A New Era - The Defenders of Cape Girardeau
by Gen.Reaper
Summary: Two years after the events of HTTYD2, the entire Isle of Berk along with all the dragons in the world are transported to another world by a mysterious being who possessed the body of a ill Gothi to an alternate reality where the United States had been torn apart by economic and political upheaval to help the newly-created American People's Party survive and reunite their country.
1. Chapter One

**A New Age**

_The Defenders of Cape Girardeau_

Introduction – A Sickly Soothsayer

Two years have passed since the defeat of Drago Bludvist and his Bewilderbeast and things on Berk have returned to normal under the rule of the Hairy Hooligan's new chieftain, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock and his newly wedded wife, Astrid. However Gothi, the Hairy Hooligans' elderly soothsayer for many years has come down with a mysterious illness which has made her bedridden that the village's healers have been unable to cure despite their best efforts making Hiccup and the rest of the village worry for her life, however unbeknownst to Hiccup or the rest of the Hairy Hooligan tribe, Gothi's illness is only just the beginning of something much larger which not only effect their world, but another one as well.

Chapter One: The Transitioning

**The Isle of Berk – Hairy Hooligan Village; the Barbaric Archipelago **

**June 18****th****, 987 AD – 0743 Hours CST **

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock had been awake for most of the night reviewing a treaty with another tribe signed by his late father, Stoick the Vast, that was soon due to be renewed while his dragon, Toothless the Night Fury, the alpha of the dragons living on Berk, was curled up asleep in front of the fireplace with his wife's dragon, Stormfly the Deadly Nadder while Astrid was asleep in their bed upstairs after coming down with some nausea

"First Gothi gets sick and now Astrid…I hope this isn't the beginning of some kind epidemic." Hiccup thought to himself as he reviewed the treaty with his increasingly tired eyes when the village's blacksmith, Gobber the Belch busted through the front door, waking Toothless and Stormfly and surprising Hiccup, who fell back in his chair

"Hiccup! Something's going on with Gothi!" Gobber shouted worryingly

"What do you mean?" Hiccup asked him as he got up

"I don't know Hiccup, her eyes are glowing and everything, I've never seen anything like it before!" He replied, "Your mother is already up there and she's scared to death!"

"Glowing?!" Hiccup asked as he motioned for Toothless to get up while Astrid came down the stairs

"Hiccup, what's going on?" Astrid asked Hiccup as he grabbed his fire sword, Inferno and placed it in its sheath before walking out of the house with Gobber where the blacksmith's dragon, Grump the Hotburple was laying on the ground, already half asleep while Toothless followed Gobber and Hiccup out of the house

"I don't know, but stay here!" Hiccup replied as he began climb onto Toothless' saddle and engaged the tail flap into the proper position to allow Toothless to take off into the air toward Gothi's house which sat on top of the mountain which housed the village hall

"Is she saying anything?" Hiccup asked Gobber

"She's saying she wants to see you!" Gobber replied as he and Grump trailed behind Hiccup and Toothless as they toward Gothi's

"Perfect…" Hiccup said as Toothless landed on Gothi's porch where Cloudjumper, Hiccup's mother's Stormcutter already was

"Stay here Toothless!" Hiccup said to Toothless, who sat down as Gobber and Grump landed next to him while Hiccup rushed into Gothi's house to find his mother, Valka, sitting on a the stairs leading up to Gothi's bedroom upstairs

"She's…up there." Valka said to Hiccup shakingly

Hiccup carefully stepped past Valka and continued up the stairs to Gothi's bedroom where he found the elderly soothsayer laying in her bed, her eyes glowing a bright blue as she stared up at the ceiling

"Go-Gothi?" Hiccup asked the Soothsayer, who suddenly sat up at a unhuman speed and looked at Hiccup, who jumped back

"Are you Hiccup Horrendous Haddock, the chieftain of this tribe?" Gothi asked him in a strange spirit-like voice

Hiccup nodded, his heart racing

"We don't have much time, you must prepare your people for the transitioning." Gothi said to Hiccup

"Transitioning?! What transitioning?!" Hiccup asked her

"Tell them to stay indoors as being caught outside during the transitioning will be knocked unconscious." Gothi replied, "When you arrive in the other world, look for a man by the name of Blake Emmonds, he will help in your journey to reunite the shattered union."

"Other world?! The shattered union?" Hiccup asked her, "What do you mean?!"

"Dragons are doomed to extinction in this world young Chieftain, in the world we're sending your tribe and them to, they will be safe if you successfully reunite the shattered union." She replied, "And for your troubles we will reunite you and your family with two very close to you."

"What?!" Hiccup asked her, but before he could get answer, Gothi's eyes returned to normal before they closed and she fall back, asleep

"HICCUP! SOMETHING IS GOING ON OUT HERE!" Gobber shouted to Hiccup from outside, making him rush down the stairs to the porch where Gobber and Valka were looking up at the sky as Berk was slowly enveloped by a massive field of green energy

"GET INSIDE! NOW!" Hiccup shouted to Gobber and Valka

"What's going up Hiccup?!" Valka asked him

"Just get inside, I'll explain later!" Hiccup replied as he got onto Toothless and flew back toward his and Astrid's house as below him, villagers let their homes to see what was going on

"GET BACK INSIDE!" Hiccup shouted to them as he and Toothless flew over

The villages began to rush back into their homes and slammed their doors shut as Hiccup and Toothless landed in front of the house as Astrid, now fully dressed in her everyday attire was standing outside watching the energy field

"ASTRID GET INSIDE!" Hiccup shouted as sphere was about to fully envelope Berk

"What's going on Hiccup?!" Astrid asked him

"JUST GET INSIDE!" Hiccup shouted as he grabbed Astrid and rushed with her into their house with Toothless and Stormfly right behind them before Hiccup closed the door behind him as the field completely enveloped Berk and everything went dark


	2. A Timeline of Events(2012-2013)

Timeline: The Shattering of the Union

**February 22****nd****, 2012**: The New York Stock Exchange collapses and shatters the global economy, already weakened by a pre-existing recession, sending the world into political, economic, and social chaos as businesses are forced to close and lay off their employees causing unemployment to soar to unprecedented heights and putting increased pressure on welfare programs across the globe, hitting the United States' the worst as funds quickly run out causing increased tensions between radical factions inside the Republican and Democratic Parties as either party is unable to push their agendas through the other party's hardliners preventing the American federal government along with many of its state and local governments from acting to help increasingly desperate Americans.

**March 18****th****, 2012**: The U.S Government is forced to shut down due to a complete deadlock between the increasingly large number of militant Republican and Democratic congressmen on Capitol Hill as attempts at compromise are repeatedly halted by both parties' hardliners who refuse to budge until the other party completely gives in to their demands. However later that night, a radical Republican military officer leads an attack on the White House, intending to overthrow the increasingly unpopular democratic president, forcing him along with many Democratic politicians and government officials to flee Washington D.C as the Republican Party quickly swears in a new president and replaces the fleeing Democrats with Republicans.

**March 20****th****, 2012**: After being forced out of Washington D.C, the former President and the other Democratic politicians who had fled Washington D.C during the Republican Attack reassemble in Sacramento, California where they and the representatives of the sympathetic Californian and the neighboring state governments form their own federal government and publically announce their succession from the Union before declaring war on the Republican Party for their "act of aggression", creating the Democratic States of America(DSA) while other states with Democratic majorities quickly follow and declare war on any of their neighboring states who remain loyal to the Republican-led United States.

**March 21****st****, 2012** – **Present**: The DSA launches a full-scale invasion of the Republican-dominated Southwestern states intending to push through them toward the strategic oil fields of Texas. But their offensive is quickly bogged down by determined and fanatical resistance from Republican forces that inflict severe casualties on the Democratic forces while in the Northeast, Republican forces invade before the Democratic forces there could mount any form of effective resistance and quickly occupy them while the Democratic state of Illinois is also invaded and put under the control of a puppet state government. A Republican Counter-offensive in the Southwest is also bogged down and sends the war into a stalemate as neither side is able to gain the initiative.

**March 25****th****, 2012**: After much debate, the state governments of Missouri, Kansas, and Iowa declare neutrality to act as a place of refuge for the hundreds of Americans being displaced by increasingly destructive conflict between the Republican and Democratic Parties, who agree to respect their declaration of neutrality against the protests of some of their high-ranking military leaders.

**August 17****th****-25****th****, 2012**: With their states being overwhelmed by the increasingly large flood of refugees from the war, the governments of the neutral states decide to arbitrate a peace conference between the Republican and Democratic States and invite representatives from both parties to the town of Cape Girardeau where the conference is held in the courtroom of the town's iconic Common Pleas Courthouse. However despite the best efforts of the Neutral States' representatives along with the pleas of either party's moderates to end the fighting, both sides refused to compromise with the other and walk out of the conference and in their wake leaving behind a large of angered moderates, third party members, and disenchanted military officers who later assemble in the same courtroom and band together to form the American People's Party under the leadership of former Republican and radicalized bipartisan, Blake Emmonds who declares that the only way to reunite the United States was through the destruction of the Republican and Democratic Parties and abolishing of the two-party system which had dominated American politics since its first elections. This declaration makes the newly-formed APP popular amongst many of the refugees, who have come to hate the Republicans and Democrats for destroying their homes while the Republicans and Democrats dismiss the APP as another meaningless third party.

**September 8****th****, 2012** – **March 3****rd****, 2013**: A high-ranking Republican Military Officer defects to the American People's Party and reveals that the some neutral state officials have been auctioning off refugees to "recruiting" agents from the Republican and Democratic Militaries or taking bribes to ignore them as they kidnap them directly from the refugee camps. The APP use this leak to launch a smear campaign against the Neutral State governments, painting them as liars and false protectors for letting the Republicans and Democrats take Americans to force them to serve in their military as conscripts while Blake Emmonds creates the American People's Militia to protect refugee camps from Republican and Democratic "recruiting agents"

**September 22****nd****, 2012****- March 3****rd****, 2012**: In an unexpected move, Missourian National Guard Forces loyal to the increasingly popular American People's Party assault the Missouri Capitol Building at Jefferson City and overthrow the Missouri state government and paving the way for Blake Emmonds to take power and declare himself President of a "new" United States. Two days later, APM and Kansan National Guard forces led by their self-proclaimed commander and Persian Gulf War veteran, Marshal Conrad attack Topeka and overthrow the Kansas State government and declare their loyalty to Emmonds' new government and then later that same day, the Iowan government, faced with its own coup, declares it's loyalty to Blake Emmonds' government. Shocked by this sudden turn of events along with the increasingly popularity of the APP inside the neighboring states under their control, the Republicans and Democrats deliver a ultimatum to Blake Emmonds demanding that he hands over the formerly neutral states to them, but instead of giving in, Blake Emmonds orders the APM and the newly formed United States Military to dig in and prepare for battle while Republican and Democratic forces build up on their borders

**November 30****th****, 2012**: In a surprise move, the Republicans extend their ultimatum to the March of 2013 while the Democrats follow suite to make themselves look "good" to the eyes of an increasingly disloyal public while also giving time for the APM and U.S Military to prepare for the inevitable onslaught

**December 15****th****, 2012**: An entire Republican Army corps defects to the U.S Military after Marshal Conrad convinces its soldiers and its commander that their true loyalty lies with their people rather than the Republican Party. In response, Blake Emmonds promotes Marshal Conrad to General and gives him command of all APM and U.S Military forces in Western Missouri and Kansas where Conrad sets up his headquarters in Kansas City promising Emmonds to give the Republicans and Democrats "hell".

**December 25****th****, 2012**: Several APM Militiamen report seeing strange lights in the sky outside of Cape Girardeau, but these reports are quickly dismissed to be Republican drones spying on APM and U.S Military positions. More lights are reported near Kansas City, but are also dismissed to be drones or aircraft.

**January 6****th**, **2013**: A farmer in Central Missouri reports to APM Officials that one of his cows were taken from his corral by a large flying "dragon-like" creature which flew off into the night before disappearing into a green light, but is quickly dismissed

**January 8****th****, 2013**: Another farmer, this time in Northern Missouri reports seeing a dragon drinking out of a creek running through his property before it suddenly disappeared into a green flash of light

**January 10****th****, 2012**: A Chicken Farmer in Cape Girardeau Country reports that his chicken farm was attacked by a group of two-legged fire breathing reptilian "devils" who ate several of his chickens before flying off and disappearing into flashes of green light

**January 12****th**, **2013**: A Republican Apache attack helicopter is found destroyed near Ste. Geneviève with what looked like large claw marks in its fuselage and both its pilots missing, it is initially thought to be a mechanical error

**January 14****th****, 2013**: A Republican Special Forces Operative surrenders himself to APM forces, afterwards when questioned by APM Officials, he is asked why he surrendered and he replied that it was because that the rest of his unit was wiped out by a large reptilian creature that immolated itself and then disappeared into a flash of green light. This is the last dragon report before March.

**January 15****th**, **2013**: U.S Military personnel report seeing several green and blue lights flying at an "unbelievable speed" over the Missouri River before disappearing into green flashes of light

**March 3rd, 2013 – Present**: Almost immediately after the expiration of the ultimatum, the Republican and Democrats launched their attacks into the former Neutral States with their commanders expecting a swift and easy victory over the APM and U.S Military, but quickly found themselves facing determined and undying resistance on all fronts, particularly in the towns and cities where APM and U.S military forces utilizing improvised weapons and hit-and-run tactics, inflicted heavy casualties on the invaders with Cape Girardeau, Kansas City, and St. Louis being the focal points. But despite this, the Republicans, utilizing unforeseen brute force tactics where they used their superior firepower and mobility to outmaneuver and severely damage the APM's and U.S Military's forces outside the cities and towns, almost completely isolating Cape Girardeau and St. Louis from the rest of the states, but their attempts to push deeper into Missouri were being hindered by their inability to secure the major towns and cities on the Mississippi River forcing the Republican Military to devote more and more of its forces into taking and securing them giving the APM and U.S Military forces in the interior of Missouri valuable breathing room to maneuverer and plan their operations.

**March 8****th**, **2013**: Angered by his forces' lack of progress in taking the city, a Republican General orders for the largely untouched residential areas of Cape Girardeau along with the local SEMO University Campus to be bombed with incendiary and cluster munitions hoping that it would turn the people of Cape Girardeau against the APM and U.S Military, killing thousands of civilians including many refugees, women, and children. But rather than weakening the APP's resolve, it strengthens it while vengeful Cape Girardeans rush to fill the APM's and U.S Military's ranks. The Republican General is quickly relieved of his command as the children of several high-ranking Republican Officers and officials were attending the SEMO University and were killed during the bombings including Catherine Smict and her autistic brother, Matthew, the only children of General Earl Smict, the commander of the Republican 3rd Army, whose bodies are never found in the wreckage of their dorm amongst the hundreds of charred and disfigured bodies of former SEMO students and staff.

**March 12****th****, 2013**: Republican Forces outside of Cape Girardeau report seeing a formation of green and blue lights flying over Interstate 55 while several APM and U.S Military combat personnel report seeing the same lights. But these reports go unnoticed due to the raging battle inside the town.

**March 13****th**, **2013**: An APM Militiaman stationed in Central Missouri reports seeing a dragon-like creature flying during a lighting storm that covered itself in the electricity that it absorbed from the storm's lighting before it disappeared into a flash of green light.

**The Present(March 15****th****, 2013)**: Although beleaguered from all sides and vastly outgunned, the APM and U.S Military continue to fight on against the Republican and Democrat invaders swarming into the United States while dragon sightings are increasing in number across the not only the United States, but the entire world while more of the mysterious green and blue lights are being spotted all over the skies at night, their identity and origin a complete mystery to all sides, who are unaware this is only just the beginning.

Other Events:

**Formation of the European Federation – April 2012 **

**The Second Crimea War (European Federation, Canada, South Africa, and Allies vs Russian Federation and Allies over Ukraine, Poland, and Baltic States) – Ongoing **

**Second Chinese Civil War (Communist China vs Rebels) - Ongoing**

**Iranian-Arab War (Saudi Arabia vs Iran over Iraq) - Ongoing**

**Second Mexican Revolution – Ongoing **

**South American Wars – Ongoing **

**West African Ebola Epidemic – Ongoing **

**The Great Depression - Ongoing **


	3. Chapter Two

Chapter Two: The Shattered Union

**Cape Girardeau, MO – Capital of the United States **

**APM 2****nd**** Motorized Infantry Division **

**March 15****th****, 2013 – 1330 Hours **

Charles Karlson first came to the United States looking for a job after being honorably discharged from the German Bundeswehr, but instead found American stockbrokers throwing themselves out from the windows of the New York Stock Exchange after the crash of the stock market, marking the beginning of the Second Great Depression which made jobs scarce as hundreds of businesses were forced close to their doors while peoples' bank accounts dried up almost overnight including Karlson's which left him stranded in the United States doing whatever odd jobs he could to do to earn income before the outbreak of the Second American Civil War which put him on the run from Republican Military officials trying to conscript him into their forces which eventually led him to then neutral Missouri where he settled in one of the numerous refugee camps that had been set up around Cape Girardeau where Karlson believed he would be safe from the hands of his pursuers. However this sense of safety proved to be false when the Blake Emmonds' American People's Party revealed that Neutral State officials were practically selling refugees to the increasingly manpower-hungry Republican and Democratic Militaries which both angered and depressed Karlson, who immediately join the American People's Militia as soon as it was formed to protect the refugee camps from Republican and Democratic "Recruiting" agents where he was quickly promoted to Sergeant once his new superiors found out about his previous experiences in the Bundeswehr where he was attached to the APM 2nd Motorized Infantry Division that was stationed in Cape Girardeau, the new capital of the United States following the "September Revolution" when the APM and newly formed U.S Military began preparing to defend the "new" United States from the Republican and Democratic States of America and found himself in a charge of a small squad of militiamen mostly in their early twenties armed with surplus military weapons from the 1st Persian Gulf War or earlier with little to no military training. But despite this, Karlson was determined to keep his men alive at all costs as Republican forces bore down on their positions in Capaha Park, not that far from the charred ruins of the SEMO University Campus which was now in Republican hands.

"KEEP YOUR HEADS DOWN!" Karlson shouted to Charlie Wensky, his squad's machine gunner who was armed with a M60 Machine Gun and had been barge worker before the war as Karlson forced him to lay down on his stomach with him in their foxhole as rounds flew over their heads while falling mortar round exploded all around as the APM and U.S Military forces defending Capaha Park threw whatever they could at the attacking Republicans

"THIS IS FUCKING CRAZY!" Charlie screamed

"WELCOME TO MY WORLD KID!" Karlson replied before he cursed in German as a mortar crashed and exploded near their foxhole, "NOW FIRE THAT DAMN MACHINE GUN BEFORE WE ALL DIE!"

"Yes sir!" Charlie shouted as he sat up and unfolded the bipod for his M60 on the edge of the foxhole and began firing at the advancing Republican soldiers, slowing them down while Karlson picked them off with his M16A4 Rifle

"THIS USED TO BE A GOOD NEIGHBORHOOD BEFORE YOU SCUMBAGS BOMBED IT!" An APM Militiaman screamed at the advancing Republicans, "FOR THE UNNNNIIOOON!"

A Republican HMMWV exploded after being struck by a LAW fired from by an APM Militiaman

"BOOYAH!" The APM Militiaman shouted as the HMMWV's wreck burned as a Republican Abrams tank blasted an APM Technical with a HEAT shell

"We need something to take out that tank!" A U.S Officer shouted

"THAT TANK IS THE LEAST OF OUR WORRIES!" Karlson shouted to the Officer, "Look!"

Karlson pointed up to the sky toward the two Republican Air Force Warthogs coming toward their positions

"OH FUCK! GET DOWN!" The Officer screamed one of the A-10s opened fire with its GAU cannon and unleashed a hail of red tracers onto the APM and U.S Military positions and firing rockets, tearing anybody caught in its path to shreds while other A-10 dropped cluster bombs onto a trench line filled with APM Militiamen, killing or wounding all of them as the A-10s flew back into the skies before one of them was shot down by a U.S Military Avenger in the parking lot of the nearby Southeast Hospital before it crashed and exploded in a nearby neighborhood

"GOD DAMN MONSTERS!" An APM Militiawomen screamed at the surviving A-10 as it disappeared into the smoke-choked skies overhead

"I'm running out of ammo!" Wensky shouted to Karlson, "Where the hell is Margaret?!"

"I don't know! I sent her to get ammo almost several minutes ago!" Karlson replied

"I'm right here!" Shouted Margaret Mars, one of Karlson's squad members and the only woman in the squad as she braved incoming fire to reach Karlson's and Wensky's foxhole with ammunition for Wensky's M60

"Thank god!" Wensky said as Margaret jumped into the foxhole and began handing out ammunition to Karlson and Wensky before pulling out her M14 rifle

"So what did I miss?" She asked them

"Not much, just getting our asses torn to shreds by A-10s and tanks!" Wensky replied as a U.S Soldier fired a Javelin missile at the Abrams which flew high into the air before it came back down on the thin roof armor of the Republican tank, destroying it

"One down, who knows how many more to go!" Margaret said as an APM Technical swerved past their foxhole, it's gunner struggling to hold onto the M2HB machine gun mounted on its roof before an artillery shell exploded next to it causing the Driver to lose control and drive into a tree, throwing the gunner off to his death while the driver fell limp is his seat, his head crashing down onto the steering wheel causing the horn to go off continuously while smoke started to come out from beneath the hood

"SHIT" Karlson shouted, "We need to get that kid out of there before he burns up!"

"But Karl we don't even know if he's still alive!" Margaret shouted

"I don't care! I'm not going to sit there and watch him possibly burn to death in that truck!" Karlson replied, "Cover me!"

"Yes sir!" Wensky shouted as he fired his M60 at the Republican soldiers in front of their foxhole while Karlson followed by a reluctant Margaret dashed toward the wrecked technical before Karlson smashed out the passenger side door window and reached in to open the door so he could get to his driver

"He's still breathing!" Karlson shouted to Margaret as he pulled out his knife and cut the driver's seat belt before dragging him out of the technical as smoke started to fill the driver's cab before throwing the unconscious driver over his shoulders and rushing back to the foxhole with Margaret where set the unconscious man down

"Give me a bandage or something to cover this cut with!" Karlson shouted to Margaret, who pulled out a stolen Republican military bandage and ripped off it's packaging before handing it to Karlson, who placed the bandage over the cut that the unconscious technical driver had on his forehead while his former Technical erupted into flames while the technical driver moaned

"You're going to be okay kid!" Karlson said to the Technical Driver

"Wh-What happened? Where am I?" The Technical Driver asked

"What's your name kid?" Karlson asked him

"My name? Uhhhh….uhhh….I can't remember if I have one." He replied

"Awww shit he has amnesia!" Margaret said

"Better amnesia than dead." Karlson replied as he searched the technical driver's pockets for any ID, but found none, "He has no ID either."

"Can you worry about that later?!" Wensky shouted, "BECAUSE WE GOT BIGGER PROBLEMS!"

The last A-10 reappeared through the smoke as it came in for another attack run on the APM and U.S Military positions

"It's coming right for us!" Margaret screamed

"Keep your heads down!" Karlson shouted as he, Wensky, and Margaret ducked their heads down into the foxhole as the A-10 approached

"Man I'm going to die not even knowing my own name!" The Technical Driver shouted before there was a sudden bright flash of green light

"WHAT THE HECK?!" A APM Militiaman screamed as the sounds of warfare suddenly came to a halt and were by replaced by roars and strange cries that came from the skies as the flash dissipated

"What just happened?! Did we just get nuked?!" Wensky shouted as he, Karlson, and Margaret looked around before looking up into the skies which were now filled with hundreds of dragon-like creatures while the A-10, it's pilot blinded by the flash crashed, into the duck pond on the other side of the Park and exploded

"Are those…dragons?" The Technical Driver asked he shielded his eyes from the light of the sun

"RETREAT!" A Republican Officer screamed as the Republican forces attacking Capaha Park fell back toward the SEMO Campus

"…LETS GET THIS GUY TO THE TRIAGE CENTER BEFORE THOSE…DRAGONS SEE US!" Karlson shouted

"OKAY!" Margaret replied as she and Karlson helped the Technical Driver up onto his feet and out of the foxhole

"Wensky! Go find Xavier and Herald if they still exist!" Karlson shouted to Wensky

"Yes sir!" Wensky replied as he grabbed his M60 by the handle and climbed out of the foxhole to find the other two members of the squad while Karlson and Margaret carried the Technical Driver to the trench leading to the triage center

"Do you have any parents kid?!" Karlson asked the Technical Driver

"I can't remember anything!" The Technical Driver replied, "Have we always had dragons?!"

"No!" Margaret said

"Oh." The Technical Driver said, "I'm going to get my memory back eventually right?"

"We don't know!" Karlson replied, "Which is why we're taking you to triage!"

A two headed dragon landed near the trench in front of them

"Nice dragon…" The Technical Driver said to the dragon, whose heads looked at him as he walked past

"Well at least they seem to be friendly…" Margaret replied

"For now and it'll probably last until some redneck hunter shoots them." Karlson said to her as they reached the Triage center which was inside a dugout in the side of a hill

"What's going out there?!" An APM Medic asked them

"Hell if I know!" Karlson replied, "This guy needs some help though, he has amnesia, can't remember his name and he doesn't have any ID!"

"Well that's just great!" The APM Medic said, "Put him down on the empty over there!"

Karlson and Margaret placed the Technical Driver onto the Empty Cot that the APM Medic pointed out to them where the Medic started to looked at the Technical Driver's injuries

"He's pretty badly beat up, where'd you find him?" The APM Medic asked Karlson

"He was inside a wrecked technical, we got him out just before it erupted into flames." Karlson replied

"Well if he did any ID on him, it was probably in that technical." The APM Medic said, "So it looks we have a Mr. Nameless here."

"DO NOT SHOOT THE GOD DAMN DRAGONS!" An APM Officer shouted outside the Triage Center, "IF I SEE ANYBODY TRYING TO SHOOT A DRAGON I WILL SHOOT THEM FIRST!"

"Dragons?!" The APM Medic asked while Karlson and Margaret sighed

"Just give him a damn name so we have something to call him by until we can find his actual name!" Karlson shouted

"Fine…fine…Reaper." The APM Medic said

"REAPER?! IS THAT THE BEST YOU CAN THINK OF?!" Margaret screamed at the Medic

"Hey he said he wanted him to have a name and Reaper can be a scary name." The APM Medic replied

"With him?" Margaret asked, "He looks like he hasn't killed anybody in his life!"

"Calm down Margaret, it's only temporary." Karlson replied

"Reaper…I actually kind of like that." Reaper said

"Of course you do…" Margaret said as she rolled her eyes while two APM Militiamen dragged a large bearded man wearing strange clothing into the triage center

"This guy just suddenly appeared in our trench!" One of the Militiamen shouted as they threw the man onto a cot, which bent under the man's weight

"Excuse me…but is that a Viking?!" Margaret asked

"Looks like one!" One of the Militiamen shouted, "So does this means that all these dragons came from the _past_?!"

"Who the hell knows?!" The Other Militiaman asked him as another APM Medic approached the unconscious Viking

"I'm not seeing any visible injuries on him and he seems to be breathing normally." The Medic said while the one tending Reaper took off the bandage that Karlson had placed over the wound on his forehead

"That's a rather nasty cut you have there, you're going to need some stitches, hold on a bit while I get my stitching kit." The APM Medic said to Reaper before he got up and left

"Stitches?" Reaper asked Karlson and Margaret

"It means he's going to seal that wound so it doesn't bleed as much anymore." Karlson replied as he picked up a clean cloth from a nearby table, "Here hold this on the wound and put pressure on it, it'll help stop the bleeding."

Reaper nodded and took the cloth from Karlson and held it on the wound on his forehead

"Okay all I remember is that we're at war with the Republican and Democratic parties and that is my hometown." Reaper said to Karlson and Margaret, "Everything else is either a blur or not there anymore."

"Well at least you remember that much and how to talk." Karlson replied as the Medic returned with his stitching kit

"Hold still kid, this will take a few minutes." The Medic said to Reaper, who removed the cloth from his forehead so the Medic could clean the blood from his forehead before he started stitching up the wound

Meanwhile across the Triage Center, Stoick regained conscious laying on a cot making the man next to him jump

"Well hey there! You're awake!" The Man said to Stoick

"Where am I?!" Stoick asked him

"Do you feel anything unusual? Light headed or anything?" The Man asked him

"What?! No!" Stoick replied, "Where am I?!"

"You're in Cape Girardeau, the quote on quote _capital_ of the _new _United States or at least what's left of it." The Man said to him

"What do you mean?!" Stoick asked him

"We're were kind of in the middle of a civil war when you and your dragons all showed up." The Man replied, "But anyway I'm Doctor Yulen Long, I'm with the American People's Militia or APM for short."

"Are you from the far-east?" Stoick asked him

"The Far-east? You mean Asia? Yeah, my grandparents on my mom's side were from China and my mother married an American, my father." Yulen replied, "But that was before all this shit started or anybody knew it was going too."

"Am I the only one?" Stoick asked him

"The only one? What do you mean?" Yulen asked him

"My family, I have a wife named Valka and a son named Hiccup." Stoick said

"I have no idea and I'm not the one who found you, they did." Yulen said as he motioned over to the two men carrying the strange weapons standing behind him

"Yeah you popped up in our trench during the flash thing when all those dragons showed up." One of the APM Soldiers replied

Stoick sighed

"What's the last thing you remember?" Yulen asked him

"All I remember is being on a beach in front of my wife's dragon sanctuary as it was being attacked and sacrificing myself to save my son from being killed by his own Night Fury while it was being controlled by a Bewilderbeast that was being controlled by Drago Bludvist." Stoick replied

"Wait, wait, you were _dead_?!" Yulen asked him

"Night Fury?" One of the APM Soldiers replied

"I'm guessing you didn't have dragons here until this _flash_?" Stoick asked them

"Not outside of fiction." Yulen replied, "But since I'm guessing you came from the past, some of our _history_ books are out of whack now."

"So who's this Drago Bludvist?!" One of the APM Soldiers asked him

"Nobody you should be concerned with, but he was a madman trying to take over the world with a dragon army." Stoick replied

"A dragon army? Well we could use one of those right now because I doubt the Republicans are going to stay away forever." The Other APM Soldier replied

"Who are they?" Stoick asked him,

"Basically our version of that Drago Bludvist guy but instead of having a dragon army, they have a whole bunch of armored vehicles and heavy weapons to kill us with." Yulen replied, "And I really hope that Drago Bludvist didn't come through with you because the last thing we need is a third enemy."

"Third Enemy?" Stoick asked him, "Who's your second enemy?"

"The Democrats, alongside with the Republicans they use to be one of the two major political parties that ran our government before they turned on each other." He replied

"Why did they turn on each other?" Stoick asked Yulen

"They decided they didn't want to share the power anymore after our economy went to shit when something we call the stock market crashed and took everything else with it causing a lot of people to lose their jobs and life savings." Yulen, "Then everything exploded when a Republican Military Officer attacked the capital, threw all the Democrats out and they fled to California to form their own government."

"So you're fighting against your former leaders because they refuse to get along?" Stoick asked him

"No, we're fighting against our former leaders before they're a bunch of assholes who firebomb people's homes and businesses." Yulen replied, "My entire family was wiped out when the Republicans firebombed our neighborhood."

"What kind of _leader_ does that to their own people?!" Stoick asked

"Leaders who don't care about their people anymore, the Republicans and Democrats only care about their agendas and special interest groups and they're willing to destroy their own fucking country for them." Yulen replied, "And the worst part is that we voted those same people into their god damn seats, so we have to share the blame too."

"Who's your leader?!" Stoick asked him

"President Blake Emmonds, one of the few politicians left alive that still care about people like us." Yulen replied, "But nobody knows where he is, the Military forced him and his advisers to leave the city to avoid being killed or captured by the Republicans after they broke through our defensive line at SEMO."

"SEMO?" Stoick asked him

"It used to be a university, very center of this town's economy, but the Republicans firebombed it too and killed most of its students including the children of several of their own generals and politicians which was what made them finally stop the fire bombings." Yulen replied

"I'm not going to stand for this!" Stoick shouted, "Any leader's duty to protect their people not destroy them!"

"Well tell that to the Republicans and Democrats, but they'll just laugh at you because to them we're just a bunch of fucking clueless peasants." Karlson replied, "I'm Sergeant Charles Karlson, APM 22nd Motorized Infantry Division, I came over to this country just before all this shit started and got to see it all getting torn down due to a few's bickering and stubbornness."

"What can I do to help?" Stoick asked him

"Pick up a gun and I'll show you how to kill Republicans with it." Karlson replied, "But first of all, what's your name?"

"Stoick the Vast, chie-former chieftain of the Hairy Hooligan Tribe." Stoick said to him

"Well Stoick, welcome to the United States of America and the 21st Century." Karlson replied

**APP Safe House; Outside of Cape Girardeau **

**1343 Hours**

Before the war, Blake Emmonds, now the leader of the American People's Party and United States and Persian Gulf War veteran, was a Republican Congressman and considered himself a true patriot, but when the war broke out, Emmonds' loyalty to the Republican Party ended as he was disgusted by his fellow Republicans' acceptation of the coup that threw out the Democrats and resigned in protest and moved to Missouri to prevent himself from being drafted into the Republican Military where his hatred for his former party and their rivals grew with the number of refugees fleeing into the Neutral States. Due to his former position in the Republican Party, the governor of Missouri chose Emmonds to be Missouri's representative at the Cape Girardeau Peace Conferences which he chose to accept reluctantly as he hoped there was still some good inside his former party, but instead found the war had only increased their bitterness toward the Democrats, who were equally as bitter toward the Republicans as they both walked out of the Peace Conferences leaving Emmonds and many other bipartisan and moderate Republican and Democrats disenchanted with their former leaders and Emmonds later rallied those people together to form the American People's Party with Emmonds as its leader where Emmonds used the same charisma he used to win his elections before the war to win over the hearts and minds of many of the refugees living in the refugee camps across the Neutral States, building up support for the budding APP using their own hatreds for the Republican and Democratic Parties and encouraging them to take action leading up to the September Revolutions which placed him and the APP as the leaders of the Neutral States and in the crosshairs of Republican and Democratic Militaries who had long wished to take control of the Neutral States' growing strategic importance. Now determined to hold off the Republican and Democrat onslaught and to reunite the country, Emmonds and the APP would make the Republicans and Democrats pay for every inch of soil they took, but the recent appearance of dragons in the skies over the Neutral States was making this task difficult as Emmonds and his inner circle of advisers and Generals met in the basement of their safe house outside of Cape Girardeau to discuss the matter

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON OUT THERE?!" Emmonds shouted to his Inner Circle

"We don't know sir, we're receiving reports from all over the country along with from our _supporters_ in the other states that these _dragons_ are appearing all over the world; Russia, Europe, Africa, Asia, they're everywhere, but the highest concentration for some reason seems to be right over our heads." Luke Twones, Emmonds' Intelligence Adviser replied, "But good news is that they only appear to become aggressive when they feel threatened which is also bad because we're in a fucking warzone, but we're issuing out orders to our forces not to fire upon the dragons unless in self-defense."

"So they're not only our problem, that's good." Emmonds replied, "How are they effecting our operations?"

"We've only had a few minor disruptions, but mostly on the frontlines. But for the Republicans, it's entirely different story because their soldiers, mostly poorly trained conscripts, are shooting them mostly on sight causing the dragons to more aggressively attack their forces." Said a APM General

"Anything that's bad for the Republicans and Democrats is good for us as long as that anything bad doesn't turn on us." Emmonds replied, "Do these dragons pose a risk to our infrastructure and economy…or at least what's already left of it?"

"So far no." A U.S General replied, "But we are getting unconfirmed reports of a large dragon in Lake Wappapello."

"Wappapello?! Is it threatening the dam?!" Emmonds asked him

"We don't know sir, but that isn't the only report of something big appearing in that lake either, in fact the lake is actually larger now as well and it's not because of a dam break." He replied

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE LAKE IS LARGER?!" Emmonds asked him

"It grew from 45,000 acres to 100,000 acres and there's also a new island in it…with a village on it." He replied, "Good news is that there was no loss of life, bad news is that we don't where the land that the new 55,000 acres of Lake Wappapello replaced went.

"HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?!" Emmonds asked him

"We don't know, but probably the people living in that village do." One of the U.S Generals replied, "We've already got a team from Poplar Bluff in route to Wappapello to assess the situation now."

"Good, I want to hear from them as soon as they arrive!" Emmonds said, "So what's going on in the Western Front, any word from General Conrad?"

"He has been forced to withdraw forces back across the Kansas River as Democrat and Republican forces are closing in on Western Kansas City, but he's promising to launch a counter-attack as soon as possible." An APM General replied

"What's his plan?" Emmonds asked him

"He hopes that by letting the Republicans and Democrats fight each that they'll exhaust each other's forces allowing him and his forces to sweep back in." The General replied

"Clever." Emmonds said to him, "Keep me posted on the situation, how is he responding to the dragons?"

"He wants to train them and turn them against the Republicans and Democrats." The General replied

"That actually sounds tempting, do we know if they can be domesticated?" Emmonds asked him

"Not yet sir, but I'm sure some dumbass will try to eventually." He replied, "But I'm more concerned about Cape Girardeau sir, the Republicans are coming _very_ close to completely cutting it off and we're running out of options quickly and if we don't something quickly we're going to lose a lot of people and possibly our capital."

Emmonds sighed

"What are our options?" Emmonds asked him

"We need to force open more routes into the city along with keeping the ones we still have." The General replied, "But the problem is that we don't have enough forces to do both and the fact that the Republicans have almost complete air superiority doesn't make that situation any better."

"How can we get more forces without weakening our other fronts?" Emmonds asked him

"That's the problem, we can't." He replied, "So our best option is to hold on to what we still have, the biggest route being the so-called Gordonville Gap which stretches from Jackson city limits in the North to the Diversion Channel in the South and the Republicans are moving their forces into position to cut it off and I strongly doubt we'll be able to stop them unless we do something to greatly strengthen its defenses."

"Where are the Republicans gathering these forces?" Emmonds asked him

"Chaffee and behind their lines in Jackson with large amounts of armor at both ends, but it would be suicide if we launched an attack to destroy or disrupt these concentrations." An APM General replied

"Shit." Emmonds said, "You know all this is actually making Conrad's idea of domesticating the dragons sound even more like a good idea."

"I'm guessing we should've also saw this coming with all the reports of the dragons and lights that came before this." Twones replied

"We should have, but we didn't, but that's in the past and now we have to find a way to deal with them." Emmonds said to him, "If there is any people living in that village on that new island in Lake Wappapello they probably know more about these creatures than we do and I want us to know it too."

"And that's assuming if they're not hostile, speak English, or even human." An APM General replied

"I'm willing to take that chance." Emmonds said, "Get that team to Wappapello and to that island as quickly as possible."


	4. Chapter Three

Chapter Three: A New World

**The Isle of Berk **

**March 15****th****, 2013** **–** **1335 Hours **

When Hiccup and Astrid opened their eyes, everything was silent beside the sound of distant dragons while Toothless and Stormfly were sitting over them staring down at their riders

"Astrid?! Are you okay?!" Hiccup asked as he stood up and helped Astrid to her feet

"Yeah I'm fine Hiccup." Astrid replied

"What about you two?" Hiccup asked Toothless and Stormfly, who both snorted

"What was all that Hiccup?" Astrid asked Hiccup

"I'll explain what I know later, but for now we need to gather the others!" Hiccup replied, "I'll get my mom and Gobber, you go get the other riders!"

Astrid nodded as Hiccup went and opened the door before walking out with Astrid and their dragons behind him and that was then realize that Berk, although still an island, was now in the middle of a lake and not the ocean

"Uhhhh Hiccup, where's the ocean?!" Astrid asked Hiccup

"I…I don't know!" Hiccup replied as people from the village including the other dragon riders began rushing toward Hiccup and Astrid and began swarming their chieftain with their many questions

"What's going on Hiccup?! What happened to the rest of the ocean?!" One of the Vikings asked Hiccup

"I don't know where the rest of the ocean went! But I was told by whatever possessed Gothi before this all happened that we've been here on a quest!" Hiccup replied

"A quest?! What kind of quest?! Is that Drago Bludvist involved with all this?!" A Viking asked Hiccup

"All I know is that we have to find a man by the name of Blake Emmonds and he'll tell us everything that we need to know!" Hiccup replied

"Then let's find him then!" A Viking said as Gobber and Valka landed nearby on Cloudjumper and Grump

"Hiccup! Thank gods you're okay!" Valka shouted as she ran to Hiccup and hugged him

"Yeah mom I'm fine, how's Gothi?" Hiccup asked her

"She's perfectly fine now." Gobber replied, "But Hiccup where are we?"

"I don't know." Hiccup said, "But whatever possessed Goth before all this happened told us we needed to find a man named Blake Emmonds."

"And where do we find this man?" Valka asked him

"I don't know, but surely somebody around here knows." He replied

"Then where do we start looking?" Snotlout Jorgenson asked Hiccup

"I guess this lakes' shores, there has to be settlement somewhere." Hiccup replied before Eret and Skullcrusher landed

"Hiccup! There's a Bewilderbeast that just emerged from the water on the other side of the island!" Eret shouted

"Awww great just what we needed!" Hiccup replied as he got onto Toothless, "Come on Toothless lets show this Bewilderbeast, who's the Alpha around here!"

Toothless roared as Hiccup climbed onto him before taking off while Valka quickly climbed onto Cloudjumper and took off after them

"Hiccup! Look!" Valka shouted to Hiccup as she pointed to the distance where there was a small settlement on a hill overlooking the lake

"Yeah mom I see it, but let's check out this Bewilderbeast first!" Hiccup replied as they circled around Berk and found the Bewilderbeast sitting in the water, obviously not knowing where it was either while dragons circled over it

"How can it be?!" Valka asked Hiccup when they and their dragons recognized the Bewilderbeast as the previous good Alpha that had been slain by Drago Bewilderbeast's, but had somehow been resurrected and placed inside the lake with Berk

"I-I don't know!" Hiccup replied, "But I guess this is what Gothi meant by two loved ones being returned!"

"But how is this possible?!" Valka asked him

"I don't know!" Hiccup replied as the Bewilderbeast noticed them and recognized them releasing a cheerful roar, "Well at least he recognizes us!"

"Hiccup! Do you that your father might have-?!" Valka asked Hiccup

"I don't know mom!" Hiccup replied, "But I would like to find out! Go take our old friend somewhere he can't be seen, I don't want him scaring the locals off!"

Valka nodded

"Come on Cloudjumper, let's give our old friend a warm welcome back into the world!" Valka said to Cloudjumper before they flew toward the Bewilderbeast while Hiccup went back to Berk to get the other dragon riders

"This is going to be a long day." Hiccup thought to himself

**In Route to Wappapello, MO **

Before the war Mark Horowitz had been a USAF JTAC (Joint terminal attack controller) calling in for air support for the ground forces of the United States its Allies in Iraq and Afghanistan before the depression forced their withdraw and downsizes which put Horowitz out of a job just before the outbreak of the Civil War when he fled his home state of Colorado to avoid being conscripted into the Democratic Military which landed him initially in then neutral Kansas in a refugee camp near Topeka where he was joined by the thousands of other displaced Americans seeking refuge in the neutral states. After the September Revolution, Horowitz decided to join the American People's Militia as they prepared to defend the new United States from the Republican and Democratic forces building on its borders where he found that his experiences in the pre-war armed forces meant a quick accession through the APM's ranks to Captain where he was placed in charge of a small APM unit in Poplar Bluff, helping the APM and U.S Military forces defend the town from the occasional Republican incursion along with the even rarer reconnaissance mission such as the one he was on now to "assess" the situation in Lake Wappapello after the reported appearance of an island and large dragon in the man-made reservoir which also been reportedly made larger by whatever brought the dragons into the world

"What's our ETA to Wappapello?!" Horowitz shouted to the Pilot of his Huey

"Five minutes sir!" The Huey Pilot shouted, "But we should have a visual on the lake and dam though in about three!"

Horowitz nodded

"Okay everybody! Check your ammo and get ready! We don't know what we could find here!" Horowitz shouted to his men over his radio

"Are we expecting a fight sir?!" One of Horowitz's men asked him

"I don't know! But just be ready just in case!" He replied

"Two minutes until we have visual of Lake Wappapello!" The Huey Pilot shouted while the co-pilot looked up the in air looking for any signs of Republican fighter jets or hostile dragons, but saw nothing

"I thought our intel said this area was swarming with dragons?!" The Co-Pilot shouted

"It did!" Horowitz replied, "But I have no idea where they all went! But I'm more concerned about us being blown out of the sky by the Republican Air Force than a dragon!"

"Republicans probably have most of their planes further east or west" The Huey Pilot said, "One minute until we have a visual on the lake! Should we go straight to Wappapello sir or should we go to the dam?"

"Wappapello, I want to speak with the commander of the garrison we have there!" Horowitz replied

"Yes sir!" The Huey Pilot shouted

"30 Seconds until visual on Lake Wappapello!" The Co-Pilot shouted

"Trust me, I know fighter pilots, they're always looking for something to blow out of the sky to become aces so I have no doubt some of them are cruising around up there somewhere." Horowitz shouted as Lake Wappapello appeared in front of the Hueys

"Holy crap the lake _is_ larger!" The Huey Pilot shouted as they looked around

"HOLY SHIT!" The Pilot of the other Hueys screamed into the radio, "LARGE ASS FUCKING DRAGON TO OUR LEFT!"

Horowitz quickly looked to the left side of the Huey where he saw the large snowy dragon lumbering through Lake Wappapello while a large swarm of dragons circled over it including a four-winged one with a rider on it, who immediately noticed the Hueys as they flew past

"GET US OUT OF HERE! LIKE NOW!" Horowitz screamed to the Pilots who pushed down on the joystick to make the Hueys go after toward the town of Wappapello on the Southeastern shore of the lake

"So that's where all the dragons went!" One of Horowitz men shouted over the radio

"SHUT UP!" Horowitz replied, "Get us to Wappapello!"

"Yes sir!" The Huey Pilot said

"Are any of those dragons following us?!" The Co-Pilot asked as he tried to look back behind them, almost not noticing the large island that was also in the middle of the Lake

"That must be the island that appeared!" Horowitz shouted as they flew past it toward Wappapello, "Somebody get on the horn with command and tell them that we're going to bigger weapons down here to defend the dam if that thing attacks it!"

"Already on it!" The Co-Pilot replied while Horowitz sat back down in his seat and dropped his cigarette down onto the floor before smothering beneath his boot

"Something tells me today is going to be a long day." Horowitz said

Back on Berk, Hiccup and the other dragons were preparing to leave as a scared Valka landed on an equally scared Cloudjumper

"MOM!? What's wrong?!" Hiccup asked his mother, as she stumbled off of Cloudjumper

"Flying machines…I saw flying machines." Valka said

"Flying machines?" Fishlegs asked

"They were heading toward that settlement we saw, when I saw them they suddenly increased their speed to get away." Valka replied

"Did they try to hurt you?!" Hiccup asked her

"No, I think the men that were flying them were scared of the Bewilderbeast." She replied

"Oh gods, they're probably call in for reinforcements!" Astrid said

"Which means we need to sort this out before they do!" Hiccup replied, "Come on we're going to that settlement!"

"Hiccup, we don't know even who these people are!" Gobber said to him

"Well then it's time to find out before they attack us thinking we're a threat!" Hiccup replied, "Come on we're going!"

**Wappapello, MO – APM Encampment **

Horowitz' Hueys landed in the large grassy area near the APM's Encampment at Wappapello, MO where the local garrison was stationed while Horowitz and his men waited for the Huey Pilots to shut the helicopters' engines before dismounted where Horowitz was immediately greeted by the garrison's commander, Captain Jonathan Lee

"Welcome to Wappapello Captain Horowitz!" Lee shouted as he saluted Horowitz, who shakingly returned the gesture

"Is something wrong?" Lee asked Horowitz, concerned about his current mental state

"We saw that big ass dragon that the guys at the damn reported." Horowitz replied, "Good news is that it's heading away from here with all the dragons, bad news is that it and a dragon…_rider_ that was with it saw us."

"Did you call for reinforcements?" Lee asked him

"Yes we did." Horowitz replied, "But I have no ETA for them, but we may want to evacuate the refugee camps around the lake."

"We're already on that." Lee said

"Good." Horowitz replied, "For once we're actually ahead of the game."

The radio that Lee was carrying suddenly back to crackle

"Hold on sir, let me take this call." Lee said as he picked up the radio, "Captain Lee here, what is it over?"

"Captain! We have dragon riders approaching from the new island!" An APM Militiaman shouted from the other side, "Should we fire at them?!"

"Are they armed?" Lee asked him

"Not from what we're seeing sir!" He replied as Horowitz grabbed the radio from Lee

"This is Captain Horowitz! Do NOT fire upon the dragon riders unless attacked!" Horowitz shouted at the APM Militiaman

"Yes sir!" The Militiaman replied, "They look like Vikings!"

"I think I heard something about them finding a Viking in Cape Girardeau after the flash!" Lee said

"How are you hearing stuff from Cape Girardeau?" Horowitz asked him

"We managed to salvage a long-wave radio from a Republican F-16 we shot down three days ago." Lee replied

"How'd you shot down an F-16?" Horowitz asked him

"Stringer." He replied, "Didn't even get the chance to pop his flares."

"Do you know this Viking's name?" Horowitz asked him

"I think I heard it was Stoick or something like that." Lee replied

"Better than nothing, do you guys have any transport?" Horowitz asked him

"We have a few technicals and ATVs." Lee replied

"I'll take one of the ATVs." Horowitz said

Meanwhile, Hiccup and the other dragon riders landed on a strange rock surface with yellow boxes pained on it

"What kind of rock is this?" Hiccup asked as they dismounted

"I don't know, I've never seen anything like it before." Gobber replied as he kneeled down and felt the rock, "But it all seems to be one rock!"

"Uhhhh guys…we're not alone!" Fishlegs said when he saw the soldiers carrying strange weapons hiding in the trees and on the hills to the dragon riders' front, left, and right

"WELL HI THERE!" Hiccup said, hiding his uneasiness as he looked at the soldiers, but got no response from any of them

"Well these guys seem friendly." Astrid replied before she suddenly put her hand on her stomach, "Oh…not now."

Astrid bent over and puked

"Astrid!" Hiccup shouted as he ran to her

"Oh what's wrong with me…I've never felt like this before." Astrid replied while Valka joined them

"I think she might be pregnant." Valka said to Hiccup

"What?!" Hiccup and Astrid both shouted

"It's the only explanation I can think of!" Valka said while on top of the hills, two more soldiers one of them carrying a strange device drove up on a strange vehicle propelled by a unseen noisy force before stopping and the soldier carrying the strange device jumped off and put the pack of the device to his mouth

"What do you want?!" The Man shouted, his voice made louder by the device he was shouting through making Hiccup and the other dragon riders jump

"We just want to talk!" Hiccup shouted at him as loud as he could while Valka helped Astrid sit down next to Stormfly, "Are the one in charge?!"

"Yes!" The Man shouted, "I'm Captain Mark Horowitz of the American People's Militia!"

"The Who People's Militia?!" Snotlout asked Hiccup

"American, I have no idea." Hiccup replied before he shouted back at Horowitz, "We just want to know what's going on here!"

"That's something I should be asking you!" Horowitz shouted through the device, "That's our lake your island and dragon popped up in!"

"Yeah we're sorry about that!" Hiccup shouted, "But we don't know how we got here besides the fact we were quote on quote _transitioned_!"

"You mean like teleported?!" Horowitz shouted to him through the device

"I guess so!" Hiccup shouted back, "I would like to speak to you in person without that device!"

"I'm not going anywhere near those dragons!" Horowitz shouted to him through the device

Hiccup sighed

"Hey you listen here _Captain_ Horowitz!" Gobber shouted at Horowitz, "We just have as much of an idea how we got here or who sent us here as you do because all we know is that we're looking for somebody called Blake Emmonds!"

"Why are you looking for him?!" Horowitz shouted through his device

"Because we're supposed to help him reunite a shattered union of some sort!" Hiccup shouted to him

"Well I guess you could call this mess of a country a shattered union!" Horowitz shouted to through the device, "We're kind of in the middle of a civil war!"

"A Civil War?!" Valka asked

"So do you know this Emmonds guy is or what?!" Hiccup shouted to Horowitz

"No, but he is technically my boss!" Horowitz replied, "Who are you?!"

"I'm Hiccup Haddock, chieftain of the Hairy Hooligan tribe and son of Stoick the Vast!" Hiccup shouted to him, "And these here are the famous dragon riders of Berk!"

"Never heard of you!" Horowitz shouted to him through the device, "But I have heard of your father, he appeared in Cape Girardeau during the flash!"

"Stoick?!" Valka shouted, "Where is this Cape Girardeau?!"

"It's about two hours southeast of here, but I wouldn't go there if I was you, it's under siege!" Horowitz replied, "But that's also where President Emmonds is as well."

"Under siege by who?!" Valka shouted

"The Republicans, they used to be one of our country's major political parties before they decided they didn't want to share the country with the other party, the Democrats, who are also trying to kill us!" Horowitz replied through his device, "Both of them are complete shitheads anyway!"

"Then what _political_ party are you and Emmonds with?!" Hiccup asked him

"The American People's Party!" Horowitz replied, "And for once we have a party in this country that stays true to its name, but that's up to personal opinion!"

"How do we contact Emmonds?!" Hiccup shouted to him

"Hell if I know!" Horowitz replied with his device, "But he's probably in some safe house outside of Cape Girardeau!"

"What thing he can problem talk to him from here." Gobber said under his breath

"Our dragons won't hurt you if you come down here to talk to us like normal people!" Hiccup shouted to Horowitz

"How can you be sure of that?!" Horowitz asked him through the device

"Hey if we wanted to hurt you we would've brought the rest of our tribe's dragon riders and that Bewilderbeast and its dragons with us!" Hiccup shouted to Horowitz

"FINE! You win!" Horowitz shouted with his device which he handed to the nearby APM Soldier before he started down the hill toward the dragon riders

"Hey! Aren't you that dragon rider we saw on the way here?" Horowitz asked Valka

"You were one of the men in those flying machines?" Valka asked him

"Yeah and they're called helicopters, more specifically Hueys." He replied, "And if you're wondering you and that _Bewilderbeast_ of yours' scared us too."

"So Captain Horowitz, are you the one in charge here?" Hiccup asked him

"No, I was sent here on orders from Emmonds to assess the situation after we heard about that Bewilderbeast and island of yours appearing in the lake, which is also larger than it used to be." Horowitz replied, "Probably from all the water that your island displaced"

"So are you sure you don't know any way to contact Emmonds?" Hiccup asked him

"Well you could try my direct superior, General Cornwallis in Poplar Bluff, he's the commander of the APM forces in this general area." Horowitz replied as he looked at Toothless and the other dragons, who giving him curious and cautious looks

"Can you tell those men to stand down, we didn't come here looking for a fight, we just wanted to sort things before one started." Hiccup said to Horowitz

"Well the reason we're on edge is because over there is a dam and we were worried that Bewilderbeast would attack it and cause a break which would empty this entire lake into the countryside, killing who knows how many people." Horowitz replied

"My Bewilderbeast will not attack your dam unless it feels threatened and flying those helicopters around it is a good way to make it feel like it is." Valka said to him

"Well _sorry_, unlike you guys, we're not familiar with all these damn dragons because before now they didn't exist in this world outside of fantasy!" Horowitz replied, "But we're also near an active warzone because the frontline is only a relatively short drive away, so we're going to be a bit on edge because any minute now Republican forces could bear down on us with everything they have and all these damn dragons aren't making us feel any better!"

"Well I can ensure and your superiors that the dragons do not pose a threat to your forces unless as they don't make them feel threatened." Valka said to him

"That's what Emmonds is saying too which is why he's issued all those orders telling us not to shoot at them unless they attack us, but unfortunately for them and the dragons, the Republicans aren't getting that memo." Horowitz replied, "Also whoever sent you guys here obviously didn't know that almost everybody around here owns a gun and it was like that even before everything went to shit."

"A gun?" Hiccup asked him

"Oh god I forgot are probably not even from this time period." Horowitz replied as he pulled out his sidearm, "This is a gun, a small one, but a gun."

"That doesn't look scary at all!" Snotlout said before Horowitz pointed the gun up in the air and fired a single shot making the Vikings and their dragons jump

"You were saying?" Horowitz asked as he holstered the gun, "And it only gets bigger from there and its worst when you get hit by one."

"What happens then?" Hiccup asked him

"You can either die instantly or slowly depending on where the bullet it fires hits you or how big or what kind of bullet it is." Horowitz replied

"Thank you for the information…" Hiccup said as he looked around as he heard a distant rumbling noise

"Hey what's that nois-?!" He asked Horowitz before a loud noise ripped through the air as an Republican A-10 strafed some of the APM Positions in the tree with it's a GAU cannon scaring the dragons while tearing apart the Militiamen caught in its fire

"WARTHOGS!" Horowitz screamed as the A-10 lifted back up into the air while another A-10 followed it and dropped napalm onto another APM position as formations of C-130s and C-17s escorted by F-16s flew overhead

"CAPTAIN HOROWITZ WE GOT REPUBLICAN PARATROOPERS AND LIGHT ARMOR UP HERE!" Lee shouted to Horowitz through the radio as the sound of gunfire and explosion erupted from the other side of Wappapello as smoke began rise in the distance

"I'm on my way!" Horowitz replied as he back toward the town before turning back to the dragons, "I suggest you guys and your dragons go back to your island unless you want to join this fight!"

"Mom take Astrid back to Berk!" Hiccup shouted to Valka as he got onto Toothless

"Hiccup this isn't our fight!" Gobber said to Hiccup

"Yes it is! Whoever sent us here wants us to help these people reunite their nation and it'll also mean that dragons won't go extinct!" Hiccup replied

"What?!" Valka shouted

"I don't whatever possessed Goth didn't explain anything in detail!" Hiccup replied, "But so far what it said has come true and something tells me that these Republicans won't be as nice to us as these APM guys!"

Gobber sighed as the other dragon riders mounted up

"You're just as stubborn as your father!" Gobber said, "But I guess that's what I like about you! Let's go kick some ass!"


	5. Chapter Four

Chapter Four: The Battle of Wappapello

**Wappapello, MO – APM Encampment **

**March 15th, 2013 – 1410 Hours **

Republican paratroopers supported by airdropped light armor and heavy weaponry were assaulting the APM Encampment while A-10s provided support when Horowitz returned to the Encampment on the ATV

"HOLD THE LINE!" A APM Militiaman shouted as two Militiamen deployed a M240 machine gun and placed a magazine in it before one of them manned it and started firing at the Republicans

"How did the meeting with our visitors go?!" Lee asked Horowitz as he joined him and the other APM forces at the main defensive line along the Wayne County Road 519

"They seemed nice!" Horowitz replied

"Are they going to help us?" Lee asked him

"Who knows?!" Horowitz replied as he unslung his M4A1 and switched the safety off, "Why are the Republicans so interested in this shithole of a town now?"

"Who knows? It might because of our new friends on that island!" Lee said as a Republican Stryker MGS blasted an APM machine gun position in a house behind Horowitz and Lee with a HE shell

"Think they might be after the dam?" Horowitz asked him as a APM technical with a recoilless rifle shot at one of the Republican Stryker MGS' and penetrating it through the driver's hatch and hitting the ammo rack causing the Stryker to explode into flames as the APM Technical drove away to reload before the other Strykers could shoot at it

"Probably that too." Lee replied, "Let's just hope they're not here to crack it open!"

"You think they're crazy enough to do something like that?!" Horowitz asked him

"Well they were crazy enough to firebomb SEMO even though some of their generals and politicians had kids there!" Lee replied, "What makes blowing up a dam to flood the countryside any different?"

"Good point!" Horowitz shouted before suddenly a Republican HMMWV was struck by a blue fireball that exploded and turned the HMMWV into a burning wreck

"HOLY SHIT! What was that?!" Lee shouted as Toothless and Hiccup flew over the battle

"WOAH! I have to get me one of those dragons!" Horowitz shouted as Hookfang ripped the main gun off a Stryker MGS rendering it combat ineffective

"Is it just me or are those vehicles aren't as well built as they were before the war?" Lee asked him

"It isn't just you, I guess the Republicans have decided to cut a few costs to produce more of them more cheaply." Horowitz replied

"Well at least it makes them easier for us to destroy." Lee said as Grump used his tail bludgeon to knock out a Republican mortar crew while Barf and Belch covered a suppressed Republican infantry platoon with green gas before Hookfang ignited it with a fire blast, causing it to explode

"SHOOT THEM DOWN! SHOOT THEM DWON!" A Republican Paratrooper screamed as the gunner of a Republican HMMWV pointed his M2 at Fishlegs and Meatlug as the latter lava blasted a Stryker, flipping it over and burning a hole through its side

"TAKE OUT THAT HMMWV!" Horowitz shouted to the gunner of the Technical with the recoilless rifle as it drove back up into position

"Yes sir!" The Gunner shouted as he aimed his recoilless rifle at the HMMWV before firing and destroying the HMMWV before its gunner could start firing at the Vikings while Hiccup and Toothless took out another Stryker MGS with a plasma blast

"I guess the Republicunts don't like getting a taste of their own medicine!" Lee shouted, "COME ON BOYS WE CAN'T LET THESE DRAGON RIDERS HAVE ALL THE FUN! LIGHT THESE FUCKERS UP!"

"FOR THE UNION!" An APM Militiaman shouted as Valka, now clad in her Vigilante outfit, and Cloudjumper appeared over the Wappapello Dam as the Bewilderbeast emerged from the water behind them

"HOLY SHIT!" An APM Militiaman shouted

"SCREW THIS SHIT!" A Republican Paratrooper shouted as he and some of the other Paratroopers turned around and fled

"GET BACK HERE YOU COWARDS! A Republican Officer shouted as he pulled out his gun and began shooting some of the retreating Paratroopers in their backs

"WHAT THE HELL?! He's shooting his own guys!" Lee shouted

"I see that!" Horowitz replied as he aimed his M4A1 at the Republican Officer and dispatched him with a single shot to the head

"Since when did the Republicans have commissars?!" An APM Militiaman asked as Valka's Bewilderbeast attacked the few remaining Republican Stryker MGS' by blasting them with its ice breath, freezing them in giant spires of ice along with any Republican paratroopers caught in the blast

"Okay I'm scared now." Lee said as a flaming Republican A-10 crashed into a nearby river after being attacked by a swarm of dragons while several Republican HMMWVs disappeared into what appeared to be sinkholes before flying back out after being thrown out by the Whispering Deaths that made them

"Jesus Christ." Horowitz replied, "Glad they're on our side…I hope."

"Another group of Republican paratroopers has captured the refugee camp at the Peoples Creek Campground and they're roundin' up the refugees! Lee shouted after getting off the radio with another APM Officer

"Then let's get over there!" Horowitz shouted as Valka and her dragons headed toward the refugee camp while the Bewilderbeast returned to Lake Wappapello

**Peoples Creek Refugee Camp**

By the time Valka and Cloudjumper reached the Refugee Camp at Peoples Creek, the Republicans had already finished off the last of the APM forces defending it and were now hastily gathering up with refugees they could, tying them up, and throwing them into the backs of commandeered trucks and APCs while two surviving APM Militiamen were brought before the Republican Officer leading the paratroopers in handcuffs and forced to kneel down

"Zephaniah Henderson and Bill Yeager, you are both sentenced to death for the crime of desertion and disloyalty to your party." The Republican Officer said to the two APM Militiamen as he pulled out his handgun and pointed it at one of the militiamen's heads before executing him and then pointing the handgun at the other militiamen's head

"Sir look!" One of the Republican Paratroopers shouted as Valka pointed her staff at them, directing her dragons to attack them as they descended on the Republicans followed by the dragon riders forcing the Republicans to scatter leaving the refugees they had gathered including the surviving APM Militiaman, who was knocked over by the retreating Republicans

"Well that was easy!" Hiccup said as he and Toothless landed and approached the APM Militiaman, "So you used to be a Republican soldier?"

"What was your first clue kid?!" The Militiaman asked Hiccup with a Southern accent as Valka landed with Cloudjumper and dismounted while the Militiaman continued on, "I never wanted to be one in the first place, but my bible-thumping state senator of a dad volunteered me for service telling me it was my duty to serve the Republican Party!"

"Why did you desert?" Hiccup asked him

"Because I watched a quote on quote _encouragement_ officer put a bullet in the back of the head of one of my best friends because he decided to leave his post for a few seconds to take a piss!" The Militiaman replied, "The next night I was put on the same duty he had and got the fuck out of there! Can you please get these handcuffs off of me?!"

"Fine…" Hiccup said as he took out his fire sword, Inferno and ignited it as he approached the Militiaman, "Hold still."

Hiccup used Inferno's blade to cut through the chain connected the Militiaman's handcuffs

"Thank you!" The Militiaman said as he stood up and brushed the dirt off of him

"So this _encouragement _officer that executed your friend, was he like the Republican Officer we saw shooting retreating soldiers earlier?" Valka asked the Militiaman

"That's what an encouragementofficer is, see when this war first began a lot of the old guard or people in the U.S Military before the war refused to take up arms for either side to kill the people they were sworn to protect, so the Republicans and Democrats got rid of them either sending to places like Guantanamo Bay or just straight out killing them while those who were lucky to escape with their lives, fled to places like this and to replace them both the Republicans and Democrats started to conscript whoever could lift up a gun, but the problem is with that is not everybody who can lift up a gun is going to be willing to kill another human being so to resolve that issue, the Republicans along with the Democrats, although to a more limited extent, started putting these guys out in frontline combat units to enforce discipline and maintain morale through any means necessary including field executions for crimes like disobedience or speaking out against their party's policies and ideologies. Long story short, they're just over glorified political officers or as the Russians call them commissars." The Militiaman said, "By the way, the name's Zephaniah, but my friends call me Zeph."

"So what made you join the APM Zeph?" Hiccup asked Zephaniah

"I don't know, maybe it could do with the fact that I'm on the run from those guys you just chased away and that they're trying to take all these people and force them into their army?" He replied, "Plus I would look like a complete ass if I didn't, defiantly after what happened in Cape when the Republicunts fire bombed the place."

"Fire bombed?" Valka asked him, "What do you mean?"

"He means that they bombed it with incendiary bombs or bombs that explode and catch shit on fire." Horowitz replied as he pulled up standing on the back of a technical before jumping off, "The Republican General that was in charge of the forces in Cape Girardeau decided he wanted to make things go quicker and had several residential areas and the campus of the SEMO University firebombed, killing thousands of civilians, most of which had nothing to do with the fighting besides just being in the caught of the middle of it including the children of several Republican politicians and generals, which was what the general that ordered it, sacked the very next day along with the fact that it only increased the amount of resistance we are putting up for that city rather than diminish it as he hoped it would."

"That almost sounds like something Drago Bludvist would do!" Valka said to Hiccup

"Who?" Horowitz asked

"Nobody you should be concerned about." Hiccup replied, "And he willingly did this to his own people?"

"Some people are just fucking assholes kid, my father is one of them." Zephaniah said

"Oh yeah I thought I seen you somewhere, you're the son of the Republican Senator that deserted aren't you?" Horowitz asked Zephaniah

Zephaniah nodded

"It's not like I'm only the deserter in these refugee camps." He said to Horowitz, who nodded, "Plus my father has probably disowned me by now."

"Judging from what I've heard, probably." Horowitz replied, "In fact Mr. Henderson I heard have quite the knack for being an inventor as well."

"Please just call me Zephaniah sir, Mr. Henderson is my father's name." Zephaniah said, "But I'll probably claim that title one day if I survive all this."

"Sure." Horowitz replied, "Zephaniah, that's not a name you hear very often anymore."

"My dad thought that giving me a biblical name would bring me good luck and that hasn't worked out very well." Zephaniah said as both Toothless and Cloudjumper sniffed him making Zephaniah uncomfortable, "What are they doing?"

"They're just curious about you, this is a whole new world for them." Valka said to Zephaniah

"So are you only one left?" Horowitz asked Zephaniah, who nodded

"Afraid so, the Republicans came in so fast most of us didn't even have a chance to fire a shot." He replied

"Pity, well I guess that means you're in my unit now then." Horowitz said to Zephaniah

"Why did I know you were going to say that?" He replied

"So you guys you said you wanted to see Blake Emmonds right?" Horowitz said to Valka and Hiccup

"Yes, can you gets us to him?" Hiccup asked Horowitz

"I can try, but no promises." Horowitz replied

"So do you know where Stoick is?" Valka asked him

"All I know is that he's in Cape Girardeau with one of our units, but I'm sure somebody will know how to find him." Horowitz replied

"What's the quickest way to get to Cape Girardeau?" Hiccup asked Horowitz

"Well there _used_ to be a railway linking this town to Cape Girardeau, but that thing was taken out long before the war and even if it was still around we probably wouldn't be able to use because the Republican aircraft would destroy any train that would try to use it." An APM Militiaman replied

"A railway?" Valka asked him

"We'll explain sometime later when we don't have Republicunts running around." Horowitz replied, "But the quickest way to get to Cape Girardeau would be to go east on Highway 60, which is south of here until you hit Interstate 55 and go north up that to Cape Girardeau, but the problem is that the Republicans have a pretty solid hold on the town of Sikeston where Highway 60 intersects with I-55 along with all the towns between it and Cape Girardeau."

"Is there any other way?" Hiccup asked

"Yes, there's tons of side roads and smaller highways that crisscross throughout the countryside, but you'll need somebody who knows the area to guide you through to Cape…or a functioning GPS or know how to read a map." Horowitz replied

"GPS?" Valka asked him

"Global Positioning Satellite, another thing we'll have to explain later." Horowitz replied, "But those things are like fucking gold right now because the military quote on quote _commandeered_ all of them for the war effort."

"Then do you know anybody who would be willing to guide us?" Valka asked Horowitz

"I can, before all this began I used to drive to Cape Girardeau all the time to get supplies that the other refugees needed but couldn't get themselves using the country roads because I was more comfortable taking them than Highway 60 and I-55." Zephaniah said to Valka and Hiccup

"Very well then, but I suggest you guys wait until nightfall before you depart because it'll make it easier for you guys to evade Republican patrols or any bandits taking advantage of the situation." Horowitz said to them, "Until then we'll try to get you into contact with Emmonds or one of his guys and set you up with some supplies for the trip."

"What if Emmonds has other plans for us?" Valka asked him

Horowitz shrugged

"Can't say, I don't know the man personally." Horowitz said to her, "But I won't doubt he'll want you guys to share some of your dragon training techniques with us."

Hiccup sighed

"Why did I just know he was going to say that?" Hiccup thought to himself

"Do you Americans want to learn how to train dragons?" Valka asked Horowitz

"It wouldn't be a bad skill to learn these days and the guy that Emmonds had commanding our forces out west, General Conrad, is showing interest in training them." Horowitz replied, "You have any more of those dragons?"

Horowitz motioned to Toothless, who was licking one of his armpits, but quickly stopped

"I'm afraid not, he's the only Night Fury we know of." Hiccup said to Horowitz, "But I'm sure we can find a dragon for you and Zephaniah."

Zephaniah looked at Cloudjumper, who was now staring at him from behind Valka

"Uhhh sure why not?" Zephaniah said, "But where do you start?"

"Well first you have to gain a dragon's trust, which depending on the species, is the hardest part." Hiccup said to him, "But once you gain a dragon's trust, there isn't anything that it won't do for you."

"Well let's get started then because there's an old saying around here, there's no time like the present." Horowitz replied

**Cape Girardeau, MO – Capaha Park **

**22****nd**** APM Motorized Infantry Division**

Stoick was sitting with Reaper, who was tightly holding his new rifle in his hands as they in a foxhole together on the southern end of Capaha Park while they listened to the sound of dragons and distant battles

"Are you going to be okay there?" Stoick asked Reaper

"I don't know." Reaper replied before an explosion in the nearby neighborhood made him jump and drop his rifle which he quickly picked back up

"Just take it easy." Stoick said

"How can I take it easy?! We've got people trying to kill us and a bunch of fire breathing flying lizards flying overheads, who can sweep down and take any of us if they wanted to." Reaper replied, "And to make it even worst, I can't even remember my own name or who I was before this war started!"

Stoick sighed

"Reaper I spent most of my old life fighting those creatures up there only to learn that they were being forced to attack us by a bigger dragon, which my son slayed with his Night Fury and ended the war, bringing our tribe and the dragons together." He said to Reaper, "Trust me you have nothing to worry about from them."

"Then that only just leaves the Republicans." Reaper replied

"You two okay over there?!" Karlson shouted from his' and Wensky's foxhole

"Yeah we're fine!" Stoick replied before he looked back at Reaper, "If it makes you feel any better, I barely have any idea what's going on here."

"Same here." Reaper said as Margaret stopped by carrying food she took from a nearby convenient store

"Here I thought you guys could use something to eat." She said to Reaper and Stoick as she threw two small bags of potato chips to them

"Thanks…what are these?" Stoick asked Margaret

"Potato chips, they're crunchy fried potatoes." Margaret replied as Reaper ripped open his bag sending a few potato chips flying into the air, "Not the best for your health, but they're really good."

"Thank you." Reaper said to her as he took a chip out of his bag and ate it

"No problem, have you remember anything?" Margaret asked him

"Not a thing." Reaper replied after swallowing while Margaret sighed before continuing on as Stoick ripped open his bag and ate a single chip

"She wasn't kidding, these are good." Stoick said to Reaper as he looked down at the canteen that Reaper had on his belt, "Does that canteen of yours have anything in it?"

Reaper looked down at his canteen

"You know what, I didn't even realize I had that." He said as he unhooked the canteen from his belt and shook it and heard the liquid inside it slosh around inside

"Can I have a sip? I'm parched." Stoick said to Reaper, who nodded and handed the canteen to Stoick, who popped open the lid and took a drink from the canteen

"So you said your son had trained one of those dragons, how did he do it?" Reaper asked him

"He earned its trust by helping it fly again after he shot it down." Stoick replied, "He always said that once you earn a dragon's trust, there was nothing it would do for you and I believed him and still do."

"Is there any other ways of earning a dragon's trust?" Reaper asked him

Stoick nodded

"It depends on the species, some like being fed, others like being scratched, and others are content with you cleaning them." He said to Reaper, "But you know you've done it when they show a sign of affection to you like putting their snout in your hand."

"Is there a Sergeant Karlson over here?!" An APM Officer shouted from the nearby trench

"I'm over here!" Karlson shouted to him

"You and your squad report to the CP! The commander has a special mission for you!" The Officer replied

"You heard the man! On your feet!" Karlson shouted

"Great…" Wensky replied as he and Karlson climbed out of their foxhole while Stoick and Reaper climbed out of theirs and headed toward the Capaha Park Command Post, which was located in a gazebo near the baseball field

"Well at least the dragons took care of all those fucking ducks in that pond." Xavier said as they walked past Capaha Park's duck pond whose duck population had been all but wiped out by the dragons, who had taken their place

"And yeah and then they took their place." Margaret replied, "So instead of having a duck pond, we have a dragon pond."

"The dragons will mind their business as long as we mind ours." Karlson said to them

"I bet some ecologist somewhere is cringing." Jack Herald said

"Just be lucky we don't Whispering Deaths or at least any that has made their presence known." Stoick said to them

"Whispering Deaths?" Reaper asked him

"Dragons that burrow around in the ground, only popping up when they're hungry or want to cause trouble. We had a few of them on our island." Stoick replied, "You'll know when you see them."

"Wait so not all dragons fly?" Wensky asked Stoick

"Whispering Deaths can fly, but it's not their primary way of getting around as sunlight hurts their eyes." Stoick replied, "But yes, not all dragons can fly."

"Well they better not be burrowing through our fucking water and gas lines because a lot of us rely on that shit." Wensky said

"Shut up Wensky." Karlson said to Wensky before they reached the gazebo where the commander of the APM and U.S Military forces in Cape Girardeau, General Conan was looking at map of Cape Girardeau

"Are you Sergeant Karlson?" Conan asked Karlson, who nodded

"Yes sir." Karlson replied, "I heard you have a job you want us to do."

Conan nodded

"I have been made aware of your previous service with the German special forces in Afghanistan and I think we could use of that experience." Conan said to Karlson, "The Republicans have been holding back a majority of their forces downtown and we believe they're gearing up for a major push somewhere in the city, but we don't where and when they're going to hit so I want you to infiltrate their camp at SEMO and try to get your hands on some intel or if possible, a high-ranking officer and get back to us."

"Wait…wait, you want _us_ to sneak into a Republican camp on an intelligence gathering mission?" Margaret asked Conan, "How the hell are we supposed to that, the Republicans have SEMO locked down, nobody can get in there."

"Not completely, they've left the northern part of SEMO rather lightly defended, so if you cut through the dead zone to the north of SEMO you might be able to sneak your way in relatively easy as long as you don't make too much noise under the cover of darkness." Conan replied

"The dead zone?" Stoick asked

"One of the neighborhoods that the Republicans firebombed, it's nothing but a big graveyard now." Karlson replied, "Sir if we're going do this we're going to need NVGs and silencers."

"Already done." Conan said to him as one of his ensigns tossed a rucksack to Karlson, "You and your men get as much rest as they can, you'll be leaving at 1900 hours."

"Yes sir." Karlson replied

"Dismissed." Conan said as Karlson and his squad turned around and left

"Well we're boned." Herald said

"Try to be optimistic would you?" Karlson asked him, "I did tons of ops like that when I was in Afghanistan, I don't see how this is any different besides the fact that we're facing a foe that is a lot better equipped."

"Uhhh Karlson not all of us were fucking special forces fighting towelheads in Afghanistan." Wensky said to Karlson

"Well we do have one advantage that the Republicans don't, a guy who knows how to ride dragons." Karlson replied, "Think you can show us how your son did it?"

"Well I was going have to eventually." Stoick replied, "Let's get started."

**APP Safe House; Outside of Cape Girardeau**

**1705 Hours **

President Emmonds was in his office on the upper floor of the safe house sitting in a chair behind a makeshift desk consisting of two stacks of concrete blocks with a board on top of them as he reviewed intelligence reports of the latest Republican troop movements in the area when there was a knock on the door

"Come in!" Emmonds shouted before the door opened and Twones came in, "What is it?"

"Sir, we just received a report from the team we went to Wappapello." Twones said to him

"We did?! What did they find?!" Emmonds asked him

"They confirmed the reports about there being a large dragon and island in the lake." Twones replied, "But good news is that we have nothing to worry about."

"What do you mean we have nothing to worry about?!" Emmonds asked him

"Because they helped the garrison in Wappapello repulse a raid by Republican paratroopers." Twones replied

"What were the Republicans doing all the way up there?!" Emmonds asked him

"We don't know, but the leader of the team we sent thinks they were to blow the dam up." Twones replied, "In response to this attack, General Cornwallis has relocated two army divisions to increase our defenses there along with deploying anti-air sites."

"Good, what about the inhabitants of the island?" Emmonds asked him

"They're Vikings from an alternate reality, the same reality that these dragons came from." Twones replied, "According to their chieftain, a Hiccup Haddock, they were sent here by something that possessed their village's soothsayer to help us win war, but in order to do that, they want to meet with you…_in person_."

"Did they say why they wanted them to help us?" Emmonds asked him

Twones shook his head

"Well we can use all the help we can get." Emmonds said to him, "Can they help us deal with the dragons?"

"Uhhh yes, the entire tribe is made up of skilled dragon trainers and riders." Twones replied, "But sir…there's something else, Hiccup's father and the previous chieftain of the tribe, Stoick the Vast, who was previously deceased, has also reappeared alive and well in Cape Girardeau according to a transmission that the Wappapello garrison intercepted on a radio they salvaged from a shot down Republican fighter jet."

"Why didn't we hear anything about this?!" Emmonds shouted, "Where this is this Stoick the Vast now?!"

"We don't know, all we know is that he's inside Cape Girardeau with one of our units." Twones replied, "But we're looking for him."

"Once you've found him, bring him here immediately." Emmonds said to him, "Now what about this Hiccup and his tribe? Where do they want to meet?"

"Here." Twones replied, "They're going to ride their dragons here with the help of a guide from the garrison a…Zephaniah Henderson."

"Zephaniah Henderson? As in Senator Henderson's son? How did we get him on our side?" Emmonds asked him

"He's a Republican deserter, his dad apparently forced him to join the Republican military when the war started." Twones replied

"That defiantly sounds like ole Jeff, he was always a fucking nut." Emmonds said, "Can we trust Zephaniah?"

"Well we haven't had any problems with him." Twones replied, "But sir…as you know, General Conrad has shown interest in training the dragons to help his forces fight the Republicans and Democrats attacking Kansas City and I'm sure he too would like to talk with his Hiccup and his dragon trainer friends and I suggest we send some of them his way as soon as possible."

"I'll meet with them first." Emmonds said to him, "Have they shared their dragon training techniques with any of our guys at Wappapello?"

"Yes sir, they're training Zephaniah and the team we sent up there how to train and ride dragons as we speak." Twones replied

"Good, have them come up here as well." Emmonds said to him, "What about this big dragon?"

"It's called a Bewilderbeast, it's apparently an Alpha dragon and it's able to control and manipulate other dragons as the Republicans that attacked Wappapello learned." Twones replied, "But it can't move very far from the lake as it has no wings, but I talked to an engineer who's also over there and he says he and his men might be able to fix that problem using a rather large number of chinooks."

"Well that's sounds interesting." Emmonds said, "When will they arrive?"

"We don't know, it depends how fast their dragons are and how many problems they run into on the way here." Twones replied

"Good enough for me, send them here as soon as they can leave." Emmonds said to him

"Yes sir." Twones replied before he turned around and left the office

**Wappapello, MO – APM Encampment **

With Hiccup's guidance, Zephaniah was carefully approaching a large male Monstrous Nightmare who was staring at him while other APM Militiamen and U.S Soldiers watched from a distance, some of them recording the moment with their cellphones or other electronic devices

"Just show him some respect." Hiccup said to Zephaniah, who anxiously nodded as he held his hand out to the Monstrous Nightmare that turned its head as it began to approach Zephaniah

"I can do this…" Zephaniah thought to himself as he got close enough to the Monstrous Nightmare to place his hand gently on its snout making it hum and purr while Zephaniah watched in disbelief

"He likes you." Hiccup said to him as Zephaniah kneeled down and carefully petted the Monstrous Nightmare's snout with his other hand, "So what are you going to name him?"

"Hmmmm…well I did study a lot of Greek Mythology when I was in high school, so what about…Zeus?" Zephaniah said as he looked at the Monstrous Nightmare, "Seems like a fitting name for a dragon like you, all big and powerful."

The Monstrous Nightmare nudged Zephaniah with its snout, knocking him down

"I think he likes it." Hiccup said to him as Zeus helped Zephaniah back onto his feet, "So now all you need is a saddle unless you want to do what my mom does with her dragon."

"I think I'll go for a saddle for now kid." Zephaniah replied as he gently patted Zeus on the snout

"You're really getting the hang of this!" Hiccup said, "I've never seen anybody tame a Monstrous Nightmare this fast."

"I don't know…it just seems to be coming to me naturally, must be a hidden gene or something." Zephaniah replied, "So what is it going to take to feed this guy?"

"Monstrous Nightmares are primarily fish eaters, but they do like to eat scented flowers time to time." Hiccup said to him

"Fish and scented flowers…got it." Zephaniah replied as he scratched Zeus' neck making him kick his leg, "You like that don't you?"

"Be careful doing that, you can knock him out that way." Hiccup said

"Noted." Zephaniah said while nearby, Horowitz was sitting with his new Hobblegrunt, Anole as Gobber made measurements so he could make a saddle

"So I keep hearing you guys mention a Drago Bludvist, who was he?" Horowitz asked Gobber

"A madman with no conscious." Gobber replied, "He was trying to build an army of dragons and we stopped him in his tracks by defeating him and his Bewilderbeast two years ago…but we didn't do it without a loss."

"You mean Stoick?" Horowitz asked him

Gobber nodded

"Me and Stoick grew up together, didn't always get along, but we were almost like brothers." Gobber said, "I never truly cried until the day he was taken from us."

"I know how it feels I lost a lot of my buddies in the wars that came before this one." Horowitz replied

"So what happened to your country's allies? Why haven't they gotten involved in all this?" Gobber asked him

"They either have their own concerns or don't want to get involved because they're scared of what could happen if the party they support loses." Horowitz replied, "There's been some talk that the Europeans are going to eventually send expeditionary forces to help the Republicans if they ever win the war they're fighting with the Russians, but so far that hasn't materialized and I doubt it ever will because I doubt the Europeans really want to get involved with this mess and neither do our friends in the north, the Canadians, who I'm sure are more concerned that this mess is eventually going to spill over the border."

"What about your southern neighbor, this Mexico or whatever they call it?" Gobber asked him

"The Mexicans are too knee deep in their own shit right now to do much of anything." Horowitz replied, "Personally I'd rather have other countries stay out of this because the Republicans and Democrats are enough trouble by themselves."

Gobber nodded

"Well at least you have us and the dragons now." He said to Horowitz

"I guess you're right." Horowitz replied, "I just hope who or whatever sent you here didn't send that Drago Bludvist guy here as well because this world has enough madmen without a conscious in it as it is and the last thing we need is one that knows how to manipulate dragons."

"Well we can only hope." Gobber said as he finished up his measurements before Anole laid down behind Horowitz, who patted the Hobblegrunt on the head

"You know these dragons are actually kind of cute when you get past the while 'they're dragons' thing." Horowitz said to Gobber

"They're also very loyal, there isn't anything a dragon won't do for you once you earn its trust, ask Hiccup and Toothless." Gobber replied

Anole placed his head on Horowitz' lap

"So how long will it take for you to make those saddles?" Horowitz asked him, "I'm actually kind of excited about this now."

"Maybe two or three hours." Gobber replied, "But for now you better get used to Anole."

Horowitz nodded and placed his hand on top of Anole's head as the Hobblegrunt hummed and turned green

"I love you too." Horowitz said to him

**Cape Girardeau, MO **– **Capaha Park **

**APM 22****nd**** Motorized Infantry Division**

After receiving a quick tutorial from Stoick on earning a dragon's trust, Karlson and his squad were now at the duck pond where a large number of wild dragons had gathered

"Remember guys, no sudden movements." Karlson said to his squad, "I'll go first since I'm the leader."

"Go ahead." Wensky replied, "We'll stay right here."

Karlson took a deep breath as he looked at the dragons at the pond in front of him, eventually choosing a Rumblehorn and began to approach it

"Hey there big guy." Karlson said to the Rumblehorn when he was close enough to it as the large dragon noticed him, but held its position as Karlson approached it with his hand held out while a few APM Militiamen in the nearby defensive positions took notice and began to watch

"You're doing good Sergeant!" Stoick shouted to Karlson as the Rumblehorn approached Karlson and began to sniff his hand while Karlson used his other hand to pet the Rumblehorn

"Holy crap he's actually doing it!" Wensky said

"You guys really need to be more optimistic." Margaret said to the rest of the squad as the Rumblehorn placed his snout into Karlson's hand and closed it's eyes

"Good boy." Karlson said to the Rumblehorn as he petted it with his other hand, "Now what to name you? What about…Heckenshutze, since you guys are supposedly really accurate when you shoot like a sniper."

"Okay my turn." Margaret said as she threw her M14 to Reaper before approaching the largest dragon she saw, a large two legged dragon with four wings

"What kind of dragon is that?" Reaper asked Stoick

"A Stormcutter, this is the second one I've seen in my entire life, the other one being owned by my wife." Stoick replied as the Stormcutter turned around and looked at Margaret before approaching her

"Oh wow you're even bigger up close." Margaret said to herself as she looked at her reflection in the Stormcutter's pupils as it turned its head

"I think that one might be a female because its horns don't look as long as the one my wife's had." Stoick said as Margaret held her hand out to the Stormcutter, which licked it before it nuzzled Margaret, "They're also one of the smarter dragon species."

"Okay okay that's enough of that big guy." Margaret said as she petted the Stormcutter, which hummed

"It's a female!" Stoick shouted to Margaret

"Oh…." Margaret replied, "Then you're a big girl then."

The Stormcutter hummed

"You know what you're actually kind of cute." Margaret said to the Stormcutter as she continued to pet it, "I think Owl is a good name for you, what do you think?"

The Stormcutter nuzzled Margaret

"Okay Owl it is." Margaret said while both Xavier and Wensky went down to the pond with Xavier approaching a Deadly Nadder and Wensky approaching a Monstrous Nightmare and training them while other nearby APM Militia and U.S Soldiers began choosing their own dragons

"Okay now it's my turn." Reaper said, but before he could chose a dragon, a Republican F-16 flew overhead and scared off the remaining wild dragons, "GOD DAMMIT!"

"Tough luck, but you can try again later because I'll doubt they'll stay away for too long." Karlson said as he joined with them with Heckenshutze

"Fucking Republicunts…" Reaper said to himself as Stoick slapped him on the back

"Karlson's right, you can always try again later." Stoick said to Reaper

"If there is a later…" Reaper replied quietly

"Well come on let's get ready for the mission, you and Stoick can ride with one of us for now." Karlson said


	6. Chapter Five

Chapter Five: Night Mission

**Cape Girardeau, MO - Cape Central Junior High School Track **

**Karlson's Squad **

**March 15****th****, 2013 – 1843 Hours **

To avoid being spotted by the Republican forces near Capaha Park, Karlson and his squad had taken their dragons to the track of the Junior High School where they were placing hastily-made saddles onto them while Reaper and Stoick prepared their gear

"Man I really hope these things hold." Herald said as he fastened a saddle onto his Gronckle, Betty, who seemed displeased about the having the saddle placed on her

"They should, I checked them all myself." Stoick said to them, "But I wished we could've gotten proper saddles for all of you."

"These will do for now Stoick." Karlson replied as he patted Heckenshutze on the head, "Is the gear ready?"

"As ready as it ever will be." Reaper said to him

"So how are we going to keep these dragons hidden while we sneak into the camp?" Wensky asked as he finished fastening a saddle onto Zippo, his new Monstrous Nightmare

"Who says we have to sneak in?" Xavier asked him, "We can just use one of these dragons to grab the camp's commanding officer and fly off before anybody can do anything to stop us!"

"As good as that sounds, it's too risky, our dragons might drop or crush the guy by accident." Karlson replied, "We're going to stick with the original plan, land somewhere near the camp in the dead zone and sneak in on foot, leaving our dragons somewhere they won't be found, but also where they can get to us if we need to make a quick escape."

"Probably wouldn't hurt to do some additional damage as well, because I'm sure the Republicans probably have a place where they keep their ammo and gas in or near the camp that we can blow up and make everybody's lives a bit easier." Margaret said to Karlson, "Would also make for a good distraction while we nab the commanding officer and get the fuck out of there."

"Good idea Marge." Karlson replied as he quickly checked his wristwatch, "Okay everybody mount up, it's time to go!"

Everybody nodded and started to get onto their dragons with Reaper climbing onto Owl with Margaret

"You going to be okay back there?" Margaret asked Reaper

"I think so, just don't do anything too fancy." Reaper replied as Stoick climbed onto Heckenshutze with Karlson

"You know how to use those?" Karlson asked Stoick, who had a pair of NVGs on his head

"They're not that hard to use." Stoick replied and Karlson nodded

"Okay Heckenshutze, let's go!" Karlson shouted to Heckenshutze, who took off into the air followed by Owl, Zippo, Betty, and Xavier's Deadly Nadder, Thorn, stopping when they were high above Cape Girardeau

"Is everybody okay?!" Karlson shouted once their dragons had stopped ascending and achieved leveled flight '

"Yeah Karlson we're fine." Margaret replied, "This is fucking amazing!"

"Okay let's move out!" Karlson shouted as he directed Heckenshutze to the North while the others followed

"So how will we know when we reach the dead zone?" Stoick asked Karlson

"You'll know, trust me, it's hard to miss." Karlson replied

"So is that the Mississippi River over there?" Stoick asked Karlson as he looked at the Mississippi River with was crammed full of Republican troop and supply barges while supply convoys crossed over the river on the Bill Emerson Bridge

"Yep, that's the Mississipp." Wensky replied, "Before the war this area's entire economy used to rely on that muddy mess of a river, used to ship everything from coal to grain on barges down the river as far down as New Orleans, hell this town wouldn't even exist if it wasn't for that river. It also marks the border between Missouri and the state of Illinois."

"And the current border of this version of the United States." Karlson added

"Wonder if there's dragons living in it now." Margaret asked

"Probably." Xavier replied

"Probably wouldn't hurt to destroy that bridge." Stoick said

"Trust me, we've tried to blow it several times but the Republicans have it too well guarded." Karlson replied, "But that's before we had dragons, so we might be trying again soon."

"So is there any dragons we should look out for?" Reaper asked Stoick

"Most dragons will leave you alone if you leave them alone, but there are some you need to look out for such as the Skrill, but those only come out during lighting storms and they're extremely rare." Stoick replied

"Oh that's such a friendly-sounding name." Margaret said, "What does it do?"

"It absorbs lighting and stores it in the metallic spines on its back and channels it into blasts which it shoots out its mouth." Stoick replied, "I've only seen one in my entire lifetime and I don't wish to see another one."

"Okay that sounds terrifying and what makes it worse is that this area sees lighting storms quite often this time of year." Wensky said to him, "And I also heard that a dragon like that one was reported somewhere in Central Missouri."

"Then be on your guard." Stoick replied, "Because along with being reclusive, Skrills are also extremely aggressive, which is why they're believed to be almost untrainable, although nobody I knew has really had the chance to try training one."

"Any others?" Karlson asked him

"Speed Stingers, Red Deaths, Bewilderbeasts, Smokebreaths, Typhoomerangs, Flightmares, and Screaming Deaths, that's just the ones I know about." Stoick replied

"Wow such creative names, people these days would've given them some fancy scientific name." Wensky said

"Well the ones you should _really_ look out for are Red Deaths and Bewilderbeasts because they're Alpha dragons and they can control other dragons." Stoick said to him, "Such as the Bewilderbeast that took control of my son's Night Fury and killed me while I saved my son, but trust me, they're hard to miss."

"I hope so, because I've already gotten attached to this one. Is that right Owl?!" Margaret said to Owl, who roared happily

"Shit, we're getting ready to enter the dead zone! Everybody ready your weapons!" Karlson shouted as they started to fly over a large stretch of burnt landscape that used to be Northern Cape Girardeau

"Dear Odin." Stoick said to himself as he looked down at the charred remains of structures and the burnt-out wrecks of various vehicles alongside hundreds of charred and crumpled human bodies while the few remaining trees had been turned to crisps bare of any leaves

"The fires burned the entire night after the bombings, you could see their glow for miles outside the city." Karlson replied, "If it wasn't for that rainstorm that happened the day after, the entire city would look like this."

"Did anybody survive?" Stoick asked

"Yeah, some of them wished that they hadn't." Wensky replied, "I had a friend who lived up here with his parents, last time I heard they were still there when the bombs fell."

"Come on let's find a place to land down there." Karlson said

"You going to be okay?" Margaret asked Reaper, who nodded

"Here take this, you'll need it to block out the smell." She said to Reaper as she handed him a bandana

"Thank you." Reaper said as he put the bandana on while Margaret took another one out from her pocket and put it on

"I think we can land down there!" Herald shouted as he pointed to a large clearing in the middle of a destroyed block

"Yeah that's perfect!" Karlson replied, "Heckenshutze! Take us down!"

Heckenshutze snorted and landed in the clearing followed by the other dragons while their riders quickly dismounted

"One of us should stay here and watch the dragons." Stoick said, "We don't want them wondering off and getting hurt."

"I'll stay with them." Herald said, "You guys go on ahead."

"Okay Herald, contact us if you have any problems." Karlson said to him as he and the others gathered their equipment, "We'll also contact you when we need to be picked up."

Herald nodded

"Let's move out!" Karlson shouted as he, Stoick, and the others continued on

"Stay here Owl, I'll be back, I promise." Margaret said to Owl, who nodded and sat down as Margaret went with the rest of the squad toward the university

"Stay low, stay quiet, and keep your eyes and ears open." Karlson said to his squad, "And watch your step…and try to be respectful to the dead."

"The Republicans are going to fucking pay for this." Xavier said, "Most of these people had nothing to do with this war."

"Keeps your eyes open for any unexploded ordnance as well, I hate for one of us to step on a live fire bomb and set it off." Karlson replied as they passed the remains of an APM barricade and it's defenders

"Poor sods never stood a chance." Wensky said as Reaper stopped to look at a pile of charred bodies lying in a ditch on the side of the road

"Reaper?" Margaret asked Reaper as she came to him before she saw the pile of bodies, "Did you know them?"

"If I did I can't remember." Reaper replied

Margaret sighed

"Come on, let's get going." Margaret said to Reaper, who nodded and rejoined the others with her

"I used to drive through this neighborhood all the time on my way to the university, now it's barely even recognizable." Xavier said

"Get to cover! Incoming Republican patrol!" Karlson shouted as a Republican Stryker and a squad of soldiers started to come around the corner while Karlson and his squad ran into a deep crater in a nearby yard

"I know those uniforms, those are special purpose troops." Margaret replied, "After they bombed the university, the Republicans sent them in to clean up any remaining resistance along with any survivors that got in the way."

"Just hold your fire, there is no way we're going to be able to take on that APC without attracting too much attention." Karlson said to her

"We better tell Herald that they're making rounds in the neighborhoods." Wensky said to Karlson, who nodded while Reaper noticed that Margaret was trembling as she watched the Republican Special Purpose troops pass by

"Margaret is something wrong?" Reaper asked her quietly

"Those two over there walking by the burnt out SUV killed my brother, tortured him to death because he was _different_, they're like the fucking Nazis." Margaret replied quietly."

Reaper looked at the two Republican special purpose troopers Margaret told him about

"They'll get what they deserve, I promise." Reaper said to her quietly

"You had a brother?" Xavier asked Margaret, who nodded

"He was autistic, our dad sent us here because he didn't want the Republicans drafting him into their army where they would've used him as a meatshield." Margaret replied, "He told me to watch after him…I was pinned beneath a debris pile, forced to watch and listen to him scream as they sliced him open like he was some kind of pig and after they had their fun, they fucking shot him and burnt his body."

"Why didn't you tell us about this?" Karlson asked her

"Because I didn't want too." Margaret replied

"They're probably some sociopaths that they pulled out of a prison somewhere, because no normal human being would do something like that." Wensky said to her

"Or they've just been brainwashed to believe what they're doing is right, I saw the same thing with some of the militants I fought against in Afghanistan." Karlson replied

"I don't want to talk about it anymore." Margaret said

Karlson nodded

"Okay they're gone, let's get going." Stoick said as he watched the Republicans and their Stryker turn the corner around the block before he and the others continued on with Margaret and Reaper walking alongside each other

"Is Margaret you're real name?" Reaper asked Margaret quietly, "Because I'm just going to be blunt, you don't look like a Margaret."

Margaret snickered

"For a guy who can't remember who he was, you're not dumb." Margaret said to Reaper, "But yes, Margaret is not my actual name, it's just something I came up with so if I was captured I wouldn't get any _special_ attention."

"What's your actual name then?" Reaper asked Margaret

"Catherine." Margaret replied, "Catherine Smict."

"So why would the Republicans give you _special_ attention if they captured you?" Reaper asked her

"My father is General Earl Smict, one of the few generals from the old military who still serves one of the old parties." Catherine replied, "But he isn't doing it willingly, they forced him through threats on our lives, which is another reason why he sent us here because he eventually hoped he would be able to desert and come up here."

"I'm sure he's loving the Republicans now." Reaper said to her

"I doubt he even knows I'm alive, they probably told him that Emmonds had me and my brother killed." Catherine replied

"Maybe you should try contacting him?" Reaper asked her

"The Republicans have probably already cut all communications coming in and out of this area, so I doubt I'll be able to even reach him." Catherine replied

"Well at least you have us and Owl now." Reaper said to her

Catherine laughed

"Thanks Reaper, that's actually kind of reassuring." She said to him

"We're getting ready to enter the SEMO Campus…or at least what's left of it." Xavier said to Karlson

"Lock and load people!" Karlson replied

"You ready for this?" Reaper asked Catherine, who nodded

"I was born ready." She replied

"So where is the camp located?" Stoick asked

"Near where the Academic Hall used to be." Karlson replied, "Only a short walk away from Capaha Park."

"So we go in, get the commanding officer, call in Herald and our dragons, and fly the fuck out of here." Xavier said

"That's the plan." Karlson replied, "Stay low and keep your voices down, we're deep in enemy territory."

"So this used to be a university?" Stoick asked

"Yeah I used to study here before the war." Xavier replied, "A lot of families in other countries sent their kids here as well because it was cheaper than sending their kids to their country's universities, if they had any that is including a lot of Arabs and Asians."

"Margaret, Reaper, since you two seem to be such great friends, you two can go look for a fuel or ammo depot to blow up so we'll have a distraction to cover our escape." Karlson said to Catherine and Reaper

"Sure thing boss." Catherine replied

"Surprised there isn't any dragons here." Wensky said

"They've probably learned to keep their distance from the Republicans." Karlson replied

"Smart creatures." Wensky said

"So much farther to the camp?" Reaper asked

"Not that far." Xavier said, "Should be over this big hill in front of us."

"I thought this place was supposed to be crawling with Republicunts?" Wensky asked Karlson

"It is, they must be remaining indoors because of the dragons." Karlson replied, "Which makes our job easier."

"There's the camp!" Stoick said as the camp appeared over the hill as they crested it

"Okay, we'll split up here." Karlson said, "As I said earlier, you two will go find a way to create a distraction while me and the others find the camp's commanding officer and nab him."

Catherine and Reaper nodded before they split up from Karlson, Stoick, and the others

"Are you sure this is a good idea Sergeant?" Stoick asked Karlson

"Margaret can take care of herself and Reaper." Karlson replied, "Come on we've got an Republican Officer to kidnap."

Stoick nodded and went with Karlson and the rest of his squad to infiltrate the camp while Reaper and Catherine entered the camp another way

"Stick with me." Catherine said to Reaper, who nodded as he screwed his silencer onto the barrel of his M16 as they crawled through a hole in the barbed wire that surrounded the camp

"So where will we start looking?" Reaper asked her

"Well if I was a Republican Officer, I would keep my men's supplies somewhere I knew they would hard to get for the enemy, which would be near the center of the camp." Catherine replied, "So we'll start there."

Catherine and Reaper stood up as they reached the other side of the barbed wire and started to go deeper into the Republican Camp, avoiding any Republican soldier they encountered along the way before they came across a large tent where something was growling on the inside

"What's going on in there?" Reaper whispered

"Don't know, wouldn't hurt to find out though." Catherine replied as they snuck around the tent to the entrance where inside the tent they saw a large black dragon with red eyes and metallic spines chained to the ground growling at the men wearing rubber suits that were seemingly studying it

"Holy shit I think that's one of those Skrill dragons that Stoick was talking to us about!" Reaper whispered to Catherine

"Yeah no duh." Catherine replied, "I wonder how they captured it?"

"Who knows?" Reaper asked her, "We should probably free it before the Republicans learn too much about it."

"Or do you just want to try training it?" Catherine asked him

"Sort of?" Reaper replied, "Stoick did say that the best way to train a dragon is to earn its trust and I'm sure saving it from being cut open by those guys would earn its trust."

"Let's make this quick." Catherine said, "I swear if that dragon kills us."

Reaper and Catherine rushed into the tent and quickly dispatched the rubber suited men with their silenced rifles before they could react while Catherine grabbed the keys for the locks on the chains from one of their bodies and threw it to Reaper, who began removing the chains from the Skrill

"Please don't make me regret this." Reaper said to the Skrill that was looking back at him as he removed the chains holding it to the ground while Catherine moved the bodies of the rubber suited Republicans to parts of the tent where they couldn't seen

"Hurry up!" Catherine said to Reaper as he moved to the last chain and used the keys to unlock it, freeing the Skrill that used one of its clawed wings to remove its muzzle and then looked back at Reaper

"Please don't kill me." Reaper thought to himself as he looked back at the Skrill, which then snorted and flew out of the tent and into the night sky

"Well at least it didn't kill us." Catherine said to Reaper before the Skrill roared and blew something up in the camp

"No, but it's going to kill a bunch of Republicans though." Reaper replied

"Reaper?! Catherine?! What's going on over there?!" Karlson shouted to Reaper and Catherine through their radios

"Reaper kind of…freed a Skrill." Catherine replied

"Yeah we can see that, it's tearing the entire camp up!" Wensky shouted as several more explosions ripped through the camp

"Good distraction though." Xavier replied as Reaper and Catherine rushed out of the tent and dispatched the Republican Soldiers outside

"Well we got what we came for and we call Herald and he's on his way with our dragons!" Karlson shouted to them through their radios, "We're going to meet with them outside the camp!"

"Roger that we're on way!" Reaper replied as the Skrill lighting blasted a Republican fuel truck, blowing it up and taking several nearby trucks and HMMWVs with it

"Dear Odin! Reaper what you have unleashed!" Stoick shouted to Reaper on the radio

"Well at least it's focusing its firepower on the Republicans instead of us!" Reaper shouted back as he and Catherine jumped over the barbed wire, rejoining Karlson and the others, who had a gagged and hog-tied Republican Officer with them

"AFTER THEM!" A Republican Soldier screamed as Republican Soldiers came rushing toward their position from the burning camp

"Where the hell are they?!" Xavier shouted

"They're coming!" Karlson replied, "Just hold this position!"

"I THINK WE REALLY PISSED THEM OFF!" Wensky shouted

"Well at least we destroyed their camp…indirectly." Reaper replied

"There's too many of them!" Catherine shouted

"Just hold this position!" Karlson shouted as a heavily armored Republican soldier appeared from the smoke

"Oh that's new…" Wensky said as the Republican heavy trooper fired his flamethrower in their direction

"JESUS CHRIST HE HAS A FLAMETHROWER!" Xavier screamed

"Take him out! Take him out!" Karlson shouted as they focused their fire on the heavy trooper and watched as their rounds bounced off his body armor as he continued to approach

"We're not even phasing him!" Wensky shouted before the Skrill lighting blasted the Republican heavy trooper, detonating the fuel tanks on his back and sending the trooper flying into the air like a missile while Herald arrived on Betty with Heckenshutze, Owl, Thorn, and Zippo

"Let's get the fuck out of here!" Karlson shouted as he threw the Republican Officer onto Heckenshutze before climbing onto him with Stoick while Catherine and Reaper climbed onto Owl as Wensky and Xavier climbed onto Thorn and Zippo before they took off toward Capaha Park

"Holy crap…we…we…did it! WE ACTUALLY FUCKING DID IT!" Xavier shouted while the Republican Officer released muffled screams as they flew the short distance from the now burning Republican camp to Capaha Park where they landed and were greeted by cheering APM Militia and U.S Soldiers, many of which had their own dragons now while General Conan and rushed toward Karlson as he pulled the Republican Officer down from Heckenshutze's back

"General Conan, here's the Republican Officer you ordered." Karlson said to Conan as he motioned to the Republican Officer

"I can see that!" Conan replied as he looked at the glow of the burning Republican camp and the smoke rising from it, "And you also did more than I ever wanted you too, that camp was the main Republican staging area in this area! With it gone, many of us will be sleeping a lot more peacefully tonight!"

"Well you have Reaper to thank for that, he freed a dragon that did all that." Karlson said to him as he motioned to Reaper as he jumped down from Owl with Catherine

"What kind of dragon?" Conan asked him

"A dragon we call a Skrill." Stoick replied

"Aw yes you must be Stoick, I'm guessing one of Emmonds' guys came here looking for you." Conan said to Stoick

"What for?" Stoick asked him

"We found your family, they and their island popped up in Lake Wappapello along with a big-ass dragon which kicked some serious Republican ass from what I've heard." Conan replied, "I was told to send you guys up to Emmonds' safe house as soon as you came back."

"INCOMING!" An APM Militiaman shouted as the Skrill landed behind Reaper

"Oh crap." Reaper said to himself as he felt the Skrill breathing on the back of his neck before he turned to face it

"For a Skrill he's not very aggressive because the last Skrill I saw would've just attacked us." Stoick said as Reaper and the Skrill stared at each other before it licked Reaper's face

"Maybe it's some kind of subspecies or has some kind of mutation?" Catherine asked Stoick, who shrugged as Reaper wiped the Skrill's salvia off his face while it made a laughing noise

"I love you too." Reaper said to the Skrill, who then nuzzled him

"Well Reaper looks like you have a dragon now." Karlson said, "So what are you going to name the monster?"

Reaper look at the Skrill as he felt the side of its face

"What about Ameren?" Catherine asked

"Like the electric company?" Wensky asked her

"Ameren…I like that.' Reaper replied, "Is it safe to ride him?"

"I wouldn't want to try it with as much electricity he has traveling through his body." Karlson said, "But with that kind of firepower, he's defiantly good to have around."

"Well as I was saying, Emmonds wants you guys to report to his safe house." Conan said to Karlson, Stoick, and the rest of the squad

"Are we going to see my family?" Stoick asked him

"You're family's coming here because Emmonds refuses to leave Cape Girardeau as long as we're still fighting for it." Conan replied

Stoick nodded

"Where is this safe house of his?" Karlson asked Conan

"The guy he sent looking for you guys told me to tell you to meet him at the Barnes and Noble in the Westpark Mall." Conan replied, "And to bring him with you."

Conan motioned to the Republican Officer, who was crying as Thorn and Owl sniffed him

"Okay squad, let's mount back up and head out to the mall!" Karlson shouted as Stoick lifted up the Republican Officer and threw him back onto Heckenshutze before he and Karlson climbed back on

"And also Stoick, thank you for sharing your dragon riding with us, it's made getting around this city a lot easier." Conan said to Stoick, who nodded

"No problem general." Stoick replied

Conan nodded as he was joined by his own dragon, a Hotburple named Crunch

"Godspeed gentlemen because I have no doubt this is the beginning of something beautiful." He said to them while he placed his hand on Crunch's head before Karlson and his squad took off

Awww screw it." Reaper said he got onto Ameren, "Up and away…or something!"

Ameren snorted and took off after the others, keeping his electrical under control while Conan watched

"Sir what now because the Republicans will probably be launching a retaliatory attack for them burning down that camp." An APM Officer said to Conan

"Use your imagination son, we have dragons on our side now and we're going to run with it." Conan replied

A few minutes later, Karlson and his squad landed in the parking lot in front of the Westpark Mall near the entrance of the Barnes and Noble where they immediately catch the attention of the APM Militia and U.S Soldiers in the parking lot and inside the mall

"Holy crap!" A U.S Soldier said as Karlson and Stoick dismounted from Heckenshutze

"Good boy." Karlson said to Heckenshutze as he patted the Rumblehorn on the head while Reaper dismounted from Ameren while man stepped out from the Barnes & Noble

"Sergeant Karlson I presume?" The Man asked Karlson as he approached him

"That's me." Karlson replied

"I'm Luke Twones, President Emmonds' Intelligence Adviser." The Man said to Karlson before he looked at Stoick, "And you must be Stoick."

Stoick nodded and shook hands with Twones

"Are these…_your_ dragons?" An APM Militiawoman asked Catherine as she looked at her and Owl

"Yep…she's mine." Catherine replied as she scratched Owl on the side of the neck, who closed her eyes and hummed to show her comfort while Reaper stepped down from Ameren

"That was…awesome." Reaper said as he kneeled down in front of the Skrill and gently scratched Ameren under his chin making the Skrill hum, "You like that don't you?"

"Is this is the Republican Officer that General Conan sent you to capture?" Twones asked Karlson and Stoick as he looked at the Republican Officer, who had fainted on the way there

"Yep that's him." Karlson replied

"He could be useful in helping us determine the Republicans' next move." Twones said

"If he talks…" Stoick replied

"We have our ways." Twones said, "Well anyway, let's get you guys to Emmonds because he'll no doubly want to see this for himself."

Karlson nodded

"Let's get going then." Karlson said as he and Stoick, "You can ride with Wensky over there."

Twones looked over at Wensky and Thorn, the former of which waved at him

"Oh boy…" Twones said to himself

**APP Safe House – Outside of Cape Girardeau **

**1954 Hours **

Emmonds was taking a nap of a cot in his quarters in the upper floor of the safe house when an APM Officer busted in through the door, waking him

"Jesus Christ, do any of you know how to knock?!" Emmonds shouted to the APM Officer

"Sorry sir, but Twones is on his way back and he's got Stoick the Vast with him along with a…few others." The APM Officer replied

A few others?" Emmonds asked as he got up and walked with the APM Officer outside to the courtyard in front of the safe house as Karlson and Stoick landed on Heckenshutze with the Republican Officer with Twones and Wensky landing just behind them on Thorn

"Mr. President, I present to you Stoick the Vast." Twones said to Emmonds as he dismounted from Thorn while Stoick and Karlson dismounted from Heckenshutze, who laid down

"Mr. President, it's an honor to meet you sir." Karlson said to Emmonds with a salute while the rest of his squad landed behind him on their dragons including Reaper and Ameren

"Impressive…" Emmonds said

"If you're talking about the dragons, Stoick here taught us how to earn their trust." Karlson replied

"I would've never guessed that…" Emmonds said as he looked at Stoick, "Stoick the Vast, I'm President Blake Emmonds, head of state and the leader of the American People's Party."

Stoick nodded

"It's an honor to be in your presence President Emmonds." Stoick said as he and Emmonds shook hands, "So where's my family?"

"They're on their way from Wappapello with the help with a few of our people who they trained how to ride dragons." Emmonds replied, "They should be here sometime before sunrise if they don't run into any trouble with the Republicans."

Stoick nodded as Emmonds turned his attention to Heckenshutze

"So is this your dragon Sergeant?" Emmonds asked Karlson as he approached Heckenshutze

"Yes sir." Karlson replied as Emmonds looked at the rest of Karlson's squad and their dragons

"Are you the only ones?" Emmonds asked him

"No there were others back at Capaha Park when we got back from nabbing him from his camp." Karlson replied as he motioned back to the Republican Officer who was slung over Heckenshutze's back

"What kind of dragon is he?" Emmonds asked him

"Rumblehorn, he's a tracker-class dragon meaning he has an excellent sense of smell, better than that of your average bloodhound." Stoick replied

"Fascinating." Emmonds said as he felt Heckenshutze' scales, "As you probably heard your people engaged the Republicans alongside our garrison at Lake Wappapello where their dragons proved to be decisive in stopping the Republicans in their tracks."

Stoick nodded

"Are they okay?" Stoick asked him

"Yes." Emmonds replied as he looked at Catherine and Owl and then Reaper and Ameren, "So Karlson do you care to introduce me to the rest of your squad?"

"Yes sir!" Karlson said, "That there is Reaper, he has amnesia, so he can't remember his actual name and that's his dragon, Ameren, he's apparently a Skrill subspecies."

"Hi." Reaper said without even looking at them while he petted the top of Ameren's head

"Then that's Margaret and her Stormcutter, Owl." Karlson said as he motioned to Catherine and Owl, the former of which watched, "Then over there you have Herald with his Gronckle, Betty."

Herald repeatedly nodded to Emmonds, who returned the gesture

"Then finally you have Xavier and Wensky and their dragons, Thorn and Zippo, a Deadly Nadder and Monstrous Nightmare." Karlson said as he motioned to Xavier and Wensky, who both repeatedly nodded

"What about your dragon?" Emmonds asked Karlson

"His name is Heckenshutze." Karlson replied, "German for sniper as he's extremely accurate with his fire blasts."

"Amazing." Emmonds said as he looked at Stoick, "So Stoick do you think you can afford to teach me how to train one of these creatures?"

"Certainly." Stoick replied, "Anybody else interested?"

Almost all the APM Militia and U.S Soldiers in the court yard raised their hands

"We're in for a long night…" Reaper said to Catherine, who nodded

*****Author's Notes*****

This chapter and the next will be occurring concurrently to each other, I'm doing this because I didn't want to bunch it all up into one chapter.


	7. Chapter Six

Chapter Six: Overnight Flight

**Wappapello, MO – APM Encampment **

**March 16****th****, 2013 – 1848 Hours **

After spending most of the afternoon giving dragon riding lessons to the new American dragon riders, the dragon riders, Zephaniah, and Horowitz and his men were making the final preparations for their overnight to Cape Girardeau, loading what gear they needed onto their dragons

"What's the weather supposed to be like out there?" Hiccup asked Zephaniah

"Last time I checked they're calling for cloudy skies and scattered thunderstorms all night." Zephaniah replied, "Nothing too severe like tornadoes and such, but I know a few places where we can take shelter if things get too bad to fly."

Hiccup nodded as Zephaniah placed a doubled barreled shotgun in the holster he had attached to his saddle on Zeus

"What kind of gun was that?" Hiccup asked him

"Doubled barreled shotgun, can blast the guts out of a man at close quarters." Zephaniah replied

"Good to know…" Valka said as Zephaniah placed a few boxes of slug and buckshot shells into a pouch along with a few clips for his M39 EBR, which he had slung on his back while Astrid landed on Stormfly

"Astrid! What are you doing here?!" Hiccup asked Astrid

"I heard about you going on this journey and I'm going!" She replied

"Astrid, you can't, you're pregnant! Hiccup said

"I don't care! I don't want to raise this baby by myself if something happens to you guys out there!" Astrid said to him

Hiccup sighed

"Fine…" He said reluctantly

"Cape Girardeau has…well _had_ two really good hospitals." Horowitz said to Hiccup and Astrid as he climbed onto Anole and sat in his saddle, "If any of them are still in operation, she can stay there and be under the watchful eye of the doctors there, who should know how to take good care of her and your unborn child."

"I think I heard that St. Francis is still open, but it's swamped with casualties." One of Horowitz' Men replied, "And I'm sure Emmonds probably has a doctor or two with him as well."

"Well are we going?" Zephaniah asked as he climbed onto Zeus' saddle and sat down

"We are." Hiccup replied as Astrid climbed back onto Stormfly while Hiccup went over to Toothless and climbed onto his saddle, "Lead the way Zeph."

Zephaniah nodded and placed a cowboy hat he got from a local store onto his head

"Fitting." Horowitz said

"Okay Zeus, lets show these people the way to Cape!" Zephaniah said to Zeus, who roared before he took off into the air while the other dragon riders followed

"Keep your eyes for any Republican aircraft or ground forces!" Horowitz shouted as they followed Zephaniah and Zeus

"So Zephaniah, mind to tell us about these _places_ you said we could take in during a storm?" Valka asked Zephaniah

"I'll tell you about a favorite one, it's this farm owned by this Polish family near Whitewater, they're really nice people and they make the best chicken and dumplings I've ever had." Zephaniah replied, "My mouth is watering just thinking about them…but not that's not the only reason why it's my favorite…"

"Who is she?" Horowitz asked Zephaniah, who sighed

"It's their oldest daughter, Adrianna, she's the most beautiful thing I've ever put my eyes on." He replied, "She was born after her parents immigrated here in the 90s, she's really sweet and kind…and one of helluva of a marksman, that girl can shot a target the size of a penny a mile away with her hunting rifle."

"And what does she think of you?" Astrid asked Zephaniah

"Well we have…made out…a few times." Zephaniah replied

"Do her parents know?" Valka asked him

"They do, but they don't mind." Zephaniah replied, "I helped them a lot on their farm, they even offered me to stay with them, but I didn't want to be a burden since times were already hard enough."

"If you want to stop by and pay them a visit, we won't stop you." Horowitz said to him, "Probably would be a good place to stop for a while and let our dragons rest if they get exhausted."

"I doubt they're even there anymore, they probably fled to the interior after all this started like a lot of people did." Zephaniah replied, "Plus I don't know what Whitewater's status is right now, it could be Republican-occupied as far we know."

"Doubt it, it's on one of our few remaining supply lines leading to Cape Girardeau." Horowitz said, "It still wouldn't hurt to check, nor would it hurt for our new friends to learn more about our world since they're going to be living in it now."

"Yeah I guess it wouldn't." Zephaniah replied, "We'll make it a pit stop."

"So when will we arrive in Cape Girardeau?" Valka asked Zephaniah

"Probably sometime before sunrise, but that's only if we don't run into too much trouble with the Republicunts." Zephaniah replied

"So Zephaniah, on the subject of Republicans, did you always not get along with your dad?" Hiccup asked Zephaniah

"No, we used to get along quite well actually." Zephaniah replied, "But that changed when he started to get deeply involved in politics and taking every word from the bible like it was a law, we quickly started to go our separate ways at that point, it's amazing how much politics can change a man."

"What about your mom?" Astrid asked Zephaniah

"She left him right before this war started." Zephaniah replied, "I believe she's somewhere in Canada now, haven't heard from her since she left, I guess she got tired of his religious bullshit too."

"Why didn't you go with her?" Horowitz asked Zephaniah

"Because I was in college, which my dad pulled me out of to volunteer me for the Republican Army." Zephaniah replied, "But I was probably going to be drafted eventually anyway."

"What were you studying?" Valka asked him

"Business, I wanted to eventually take control of the family business." Zephaniah replied

"Family business?" Hiccup asked him, "What was that?"

"My family owns a small pet food manufacturing company that was created by my great grandpa after he got back from fighting World War II in Europe." Zephaniah replied, "My dad didn't own it though, my now much saner uncle does or at least did, I haven't heard anything from my family since I deserted."

"Well if we win this war, your father's opinion on you won't matter anymore." Horowitz said to him

"Yeah I'll be looking forward to that." Zephaniah replied, "If I don't beat the shit out of the bible thumping son of a bitch myself first."

"So are you an atheist?" Horowitz asked him

"No, I read the bible too, I just don't take it as literally as him." Zephaniah replied, "But I was admittedly somewhat of a pacifist, although that doesn't mean shit anymore."

"Well a lot of people used to be pacifists back then." Horowitz said, "I wonder what your dad is thinking of the dragons right now?"

"Probably thinks they're demons from hell or something." Zephaniah replied

"Well that's what we used to think of dragons before we started riding them." Hiccup said to him

"Well welcome to the bible belt, you're going to be seeing a lot of people like that around here." Zephaniah replied, "It's probably going to be mostly older people though."

"So how will we know when we reached Cape Girardeau?" Astrid asked Zephaniah

"Trust me you'll know." Horowitz replied

"F-16s!" One of Horowitz' men shouted as three Republican F-16s flew in formation in the distance

"No need to get your panties in a bunch, they haven't seen us by the looks of it!" Horowitz shouted as the F-16s continued on their course to the south, "Probably heading to the airbase the Republicans have at Memphis to rearm."

"Do you guys have any aircraft besides those helicopters?" Valka asked Horowitz

"Yes, but none around here because the first things the Republicans bombed when they attacked were all of our airports, but of course our generals were smart enough not to put our jets in any of them." Horowitz replied, "But you will occasionally see one of our A-10s or F-16s or maybe even an F-22 flying around."

"We also have to be a bit more conservative with our aircraft because we don't have as many to spare as the Republicans and Democrats do." One of Horowitz' Men said, "Hell it was taking a major risk just flying from Poplar Bluff to Wappapello in the Hueys."

"And I'm sure it's double the risk flying from Wappapello to Cape Girardeau on our dragons." Hiccup said to Horowitz

"At least we had all those hills to hide in, out here we're completely in the open." Horowitz replied, "Personally I would be more worried about running into any Vipers and or Apaches."

"Vipers and Apaches?" Snotlout asked Horowitz

"Attack helicopters or helicopter gunships as some people call them." Horowitz replied, "They make those Huey look like doves in comparison in the terms of the amount of firepower that they can carry, but most of them are designed to support ground forces or bust tanks although they do have limited air-to-air capabilities, which is more than enough to kill us."

"What do we have to worry about from the ground?" Fishlegs asked him

"Anything that can aim and shoot enough including even the most basic small arms." Horowitz replied, "So long explanation short, we need to really avoid attracting any attention until somebody develops some kind of body armor for these things."

"Good idea." Hiccup said

Sometime later, the group was still flying over the countryside while Ruffnut and Tuffnut played I Spy with each other while Zephaniah was paying attention to the roads below

"I spy with my little eye, something red!" Ruffnut said

"A barn." Tuffnut replied while Toothless and Hiccup joined Zephaniah at the head of the group

"How far are we from Cape Girardeau?" Hiccup asked Zephaniah

"We're getting close, that town we passed back there was Advance, which means we're less than 30 miles from Cape." Zephaniah replied, "And that small village over there across the Diversion Channel is Whitewater, you guys still want to make that pit stop we were talking about earlier?"

Zephaniah looked back at the others and saw a large storm approaching behind them

"Shit…" Zephaniah said as the others looked back and the saw the quickly approaching storm, "Okay everybody we're going to make a minor detour here to Whitewater and move quickly because I don't want to get caught in that storm!"

Zephaniah turned Zeus toward Whitewater followed by the others as they rushed to beat the storm with Zephaniah landing in front of a small white farmhouse where he dismounted from Zeus

"Stay here!" Zephaniah shouted to the others as he took off his cowboy and approached the front door of the farm house that's windows was painted over with black paint, followed by Hiccup and the others as Zephaniah took a deep breath before he knocked on the screen door and was surprised to hear footsteps inside the house before a woman in her mid-60s answered the door with a shotgun in her hands

"Zephaniah!" The Woman said with a Polish accent as she unlocked and opened the screen door, stepping onto the porch, "What are you doing here and who are your friends?"

"Hi Mrs. Marek, we need to take shelter from that storm because well…" Zephaniah said as he looked at the dragons

"Are those…saddles on those dragons?" Mrs. Marek asked

"Yeah because they're our dragons ma'am." Zephaniah replied, "We're heading to Cape Girardeau to meet with President Emmonds."

Mrs. Marek nodded

"Hide your dragons in barn!" Mrs. Marek said, "Quickly before it starts raining!"

"Your heard the lady, get the dragons in that barn!" Horowitz shouted as Mrs. Marek placed her shotgun down and hugged Zephaniah

"Thank god you're alive, we were worried about you when we heard that the Republicans attacked Wappapello!" Mrs. Marek said to him as she released Zephaniah

"Yeah I barely made out and if it wasn't for those Vikings, I wouldn't be here." Zephaniah replied, "Is Adrianna here?"

"Zeph?!" A Younger Woman screamed as she ran out of the house and hugged Zephaniah, who hugged her back

"Words can't describe how happy I am to see you." Zephaniah said to him, "Where's your dad?"

"He's in the town, he's the commander of the garrison." Adrianna Marek replied before she saw Horowitz and the others rushing the dragons in the barn, "Are those your dragons?" 

"Yeah, I'll show you Zeus when the storm passes." Zephaniah said

"Zeus?" Adrianna asked him

"Yeah, my dragon." Zephaniah replied, "I'm surprised you guys are still here, I thought you would've evacuated into the interior!"

"No, we stay here." Mrs. Marek said, "Now come inside!"

Zephaniah nodded as Mrs. Marek picked her shotgun back up and went back inside followed by Zephaniah, Adrianna, and the others with Horowitz closing the screen and main doors behind him as Mr. Marek led them into the living room which was dimly lit by several kerosene lamps

"Thank you ma'am for letting us stay here." Horowitz said to Mrs. Marek, who nodded

"So how did you learn to ride the dragons?" Mrs. Marek asked them

"They taught us." Zephaniah replied as he motioned to the dragon riders as he sat down on a couch with Adrianna

"Are you the ones who blew up that Republican camp at SEMO?" Adrianna asked them

"What?" Hiccup asked her

"We heard that a group of dragon riders burnt down a Republican camp at SEMO." Adrianna replied

"Your father must have taught them!" Valka said to Hiccup, "But no that wasn't us."

"Oh." Mrs. Marek replied, "Because now there's a whole bunch of dragon riders in Cape Girardeau wreaking havoc on the Republicans."

Everybody went silent as torrential rain starting to pound the metal roof of the farm house

"Have you seen any of these dragon riders?" Astrid asked the Mareks

"Only the local ones." Mrs. Marek replied, "Are you hungry?"

"It wouldn't hurt to put something in there." Gobber said as he patted his belly while Mrs. Marek nodded

"I'll get some dumplings started." Mrs. Marek said

"Hold on mom, I'll help you!" Adrianna said as she followed her mother into the kitchen

"Holy crap Zeph you weren't kidding, she is pretty!" Horowitz said to Zephaniah while Hiccup helped Astrid onto the couch next to him

"Wait until you taste their dumplings." Zephaniah replied as he took off one of his boots, "Will the dragons be okay out there?"

"Should be as long as nobody bothers them." Hiccup said, "Your people are catching on to dragon riding quicker than I thought they would if what they told us is true, I wonder who my dad taught to ride dragons?"

"Probably the people that found him." Horowitz replied

"Yeah probably." Zephaniah said

"So how far is Cape Girardeau from here?" Valka asked Zephaniah

"Not that much further." Zephaniah replied, "Only we have to do is follow the highway north then turn right onto another highway and follow it and we'll run right into it."

"Are we safe here?" Fishlegs asked him

"Don't know, the Republicans hold the other side of the Diversion Channel, but as far as I know they haven't tried to cross it yet." Zephaniah replied

"Then we should be on our guard." Horowitz said as Valka lifted up a photo of Adrianna standing with another man in front of the house

"Who is this?" Valka asked him

"That's Ernest, he's Adrianna's older brother and he's with an armor unit somewhere up near Kansas City." Zephaniah replied, "I've only met him once and we kind of didn't get along."

"Why?" Hiccup asked him

"He thinks I'm not good enough for his sister." Zephaniah replied

"Because you're a deserter?" Astrid asked him

"No, he's just very protective of Adrianna." Zephaniah replied, "I can't blame him, he and his parents went through a lot of crap in Poland before they came over."

Adrianna and her mother return with a platter loaded with a few bowls filled with chicken and dumplings

"Thank you very much." Horowitz said as Mrs. Marek gave him one of the bowls that had a spoon in it while Adrianna gave Zephaniah one

"Thank you." Zephaniah replied as he took the bowl while Mrs. Marek and Adrianna gave a bowl to Hiccup, Valka, Astrid, and the other dragon riders along with Horowitz' men

"Oh my gods these are good, thank you." Valka said to Mrs. Marek, who smiled and nodded

"I got the recipe from a friend." Mrs. Marek replied before she took the platter back to the kitchen while Adrianna sat down next to Zephaniah in the space between him and Astrid

"You must be tired from your long trip." Adrianna said to Zephaniah

"Not really, Zeus did most of the work." Zephaniah replied, "I'm surprised you didn't get drafted with how good you are with that rifle."

"I wasn't drafted because my brother and father volunteered." Adrianna said, "But I do want to go fight though, but I don't want to leave my mother alone by herself defiantly with those Republican special purpose troops running around burning down peoples' homes for supporting the APP and all those wild dragons flying around."

"That defiantly sounds like the Republicunts." Horowitz said, "But by staying here you also put yourself at risk because those same special purpose troops tend to have their _way_ with wives and daughters of those same people."

"I know." Adrianna said, "And I would rather die than be raped by one of those pigs."

"I thought the Republicans used to be your leaders, why are they going this far to kill their own people?" Valka asked them

"Along with trying to reunite the country, they also want to stamp out all opposition even if it means wiping out half the country." Horowitz replied, "And that goes for the Democrats too, both parties want each other and us wiped off the face of the Earth."

"So it's a purge?" Hiccup said

"If that's how you put it." Zephaniah replied, "That's what happens when you let the crazies run the asylum."

"And it's our job to put them back in their place…_for good_." Horowitz said

"But after we finish eating right?" Snotlout asked him and everybody laughed

"Ahhh enough talk, let's just take this brief moment of silence to relax for a while." Zephaniah replied, "We've all had a long day and something tells me the next one won't be much better."


End file.
